Teddy Lupin : Discovery
by PinkPenguin18
Summary: DH SPOILERS! Sequel to Teddy Lupin:Changes, reading first is not essential to the plot.7th year Teddy plus next generation children and an old friend... Teddy's own adventure. Semi AU. CHAP 20 NOW UP!
1. Chapter 1

**DH SPOILERS!!!**

**A/N **Hello Hello, this is my second fan fic Teddy Lupin : Discovery!!! Funnily enough it is the sequal to my, thats right you guessed it, first fan fic, Teddy Lupin : Changes. It is not essential that you read the first, all it does really is introduce my perception of Teddy, James Lily and Albus. Also introduces Teddy's best friends and answers the question 'Is Teddy like his parents?'

You dont have to read the first one though, so, if you choose to stay : ENJOY! R&R if you like, i do appreciate it. Predictions or questions are very very welcome

Sorry if this chapter is confusing, it is the prologue to the story so i thought i would put it up just before i formulate the full plot.

_**November during Teddy Lupin's Seventh Year**_

****

I've been wandering this corridor for hours.

There's no-one here, it's empty.

The black walls are lined with torches, light flickering off my eyes, giving me some kind of visibility.

I shouldn't be here, what is going on? I thought I was with my best friend…man my head must be screwed up, or this is some kind of dream, or trick. If it's a trick, boy am I gonna…

Enough of that now, where am I?

I push a piece of long hair out of my face and try to gain my bearings.

What do I remember?

I woke up in a dark room, just me alone. My body was stiff and my joints were painful. I lifted myself up and headed towards the only door in the room, this led to the series of corridors. I don't remember much else. I know my name, that's easy. I know where I SHOULD be, that's for sure. There's only one other thing I know for sure.

The handwriting on this note.

The elegant curls are known by most of the wizarding population of Britian! It was a simple note, but it was crumpled and looked old. It only said two sentences.

_If you are reading this, he needs you._

_Find him._

**A/N** Predictions people, predictions...who is this person? who wrote the note? what do you think it means? Sorry iof its obvious...not so good at the whole riddle thing. For the first time readers of my stuff, i promise i will get onto Teddy asap!! ie next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

**  
A/N** Let the fun begin! Simple introductions to start with, the story will involve itself soon enough. Until then, keep predicting people!

**Disclaimer** I don't own anything, Teddy would have parents if I wrote Harry Potter 

_**August before the start of Teddy's Seventh Year**_

'Teddy, feet.'

Teddy Lupin slid his feet off the kitchen table without looking up from the _Daily Prophet_ he was reading. Ginny Weasley sighed at him, she always had to remind him to keep his grubby shoes off the table.

Teddy had grown to be taller than Harry over the past year. He was a very lean boy, but seemed to have inherited broad, stocky shoulders. The Potter's suspected that was from the Black side of the family, Sirius Black had always been quite broad.

However, no-one failed to recognise the resemblance between Teddy and his father. Teddy possessed the same qualities as his father, he was quiet, but carried a sinister streak in him, he would be a Marauding mastermind in a moment's notice. His brown/grey eyes sparkled when he smiled, much like his father's and his default hair colour was the same light brown of Remus.

I say default hair colour because Teddy is half-metamorphmagus, obviously inherited from his mother. His hair colour, and hair colour only, changes at will, generally in reflection of his emotions at that time, which was particularly annoying when he spoke to a girl he liked…

Teddy was also half-werewolf, although nobody other than his extended family, teachers at Hogwarts, and his two best friends (twins Jackie and Darcy O'Brien) knew of this. At the full moon, Teddy would carry a heavy headache and would suffer some extreme amounts of pain. He physically transformed slightly, but only to the extent that his complexion changes slightly, hair grew on his hands, that kind of thing. I was Teddy's curse, but one he had gotten used to over time.

'Mornin' all.' Harry Potter said, yawning as he came into the room. Harry was exactly the same as he always had been, although he was sporting a small goatee that Teddy was sure the Marauders would find quite amusing if they could see it. I was _quite_ ridiculous.

'Morning, dad.' Said the voice of 10 year old Albus Potter, who came hurtling through the doorway clutching a rather shiny broomstick, pushing his father out of the way in the process.

'G'day, dad,' yelled 13 year old James Potter, who followed, 'Give it back Albus, before I curse you to high heaven!'

'You will do no such thing, James.' Said Ginny, eyes blazing, 'Albus, give your brother back his broomstick this instant! Do you realise how much that cost?'

Albus reluctantly handed James back the broomstick, muttering something about having a quick go.

James replied with a snide about how Albus wasn't a strong flyer anyway (which was relatively true). He ran a hand through his red hair and his face split into an ear-to-ear grin.

James Potter was, for want of a better word, a hybrid between James Potter snr and the Weasley Twins. Needless to say, he was a slight problem child. He possessed Weasley-red hair, in the same messy style as his fathers, with freckles surrounding his amber eyes, which were identical to that of his Grandfather. He got on very well with Teddy, and was a superb flyer. He was, not to the family's surprise, a beater, like the twins, for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, that Teddy was also a part of. He was tall and strong, often making for an unfair match-up when he fought with his smaller, thinner younger brother.

Harry was about to stop the argument from going any further before he was stopped in his tracks by a brown tawny owl flying through the open window. It was unmistakably a Hogwarts owl. Two letters fell on the kitchen table, one addressed to Teddy and another addressed to James.

James swiped up his letter, and ripped it open, while Teddy reached forwards and carefully opened his own.

He had the general '1st of September' letter, a letter stating that no new books are needed for this year, and a smaller envelope, that seemed to be weighed down slightly.

Teddy opened it slowly and out fell a gleaming Red and Gold badge with 'Quidditch Captain' emblazoned on the crest of his house. Teddy's mouth gaped, he couldn't believe it. He had figured that Darcy O'Brien would get it, she was the seeker on the team, and he was less vocal than his good friend. Teddy smiled meekly and turned the badge over in his hands.

'What's that, Ted?' James asked, grinning, he already knew what it was.

Many eyes turned to him as he held up the badge. Cheers erupted from James and Ginny, while Albus asked what the fuss was all about. Harry walked over to his Godson, smiling from ear to ear, and took the badge from Teddy to have a look.

'We are very proud of you, Teddy' Ginny said, 'Wait until Charlie finds out!'

'Wait until George finds out you mean!' James said. George always had a soft spot for Teddy and James, and James was correct in saying that George would be pleased.

'Ill send an owl to all of the Weasley's from work,' Harry said, 'It's about time I go.'

Harry strode over to Ginny, gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

'Albus, go and get your sister so she can say goodbye to your father.' Ginny said.

Albus nodded but Harry cut him off at the door, 'It's ok, Gin, I'll go and wake her up. Ted, can I have a word a minute?'

Teddy nodded and left the room, leaving the paper on the table.

Harry shut the kitchen door behind them, and stood in the hallway, fishing out something from his work satchel.

'I have something for you.'

Teddy's brow furrowed, just like his father's used to. Why couldn't he just have given it to him in the kitchen?

'Aha! Here it is.' Harry said, pulling something out with triumph, 'I found this at Grimmauld Place so very long ago, and have forgotten to give it to you.'

Harry handed a folded piece of dirty parchment to his godson smiling.

Teddy turned it over in his hands, eyebrows threatening to get lost in his long fringe.

'It's not a prototype map is it?' Teddy asked, a slight hurt in his voice. Teddy had always felt bitter about Harry giving the Marauder's Map to James when he started Hogwarts. Teddy was a Marauder's son, not James. He felt guilty about feeling like this, and his hair darkened in colour as he wished he never had said what he just did.

Harry paused, but answered, 'No it's not. It is, in my opinion, more exciting.'

_Yeah you are just saying that. _Teddy thought, 'What is it then?'

'Just tap the map and say 'I need to know everything', it's purpose will become clear after.' Harry said, eyes shining.

Teddy nodded and followed instructions. Immediately, ink spread across the front side of the page until it looked like the front of a book.

_Messers Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs are proud to present…_

_The Marauder's Guide to anything of any importance._

_Researched by the Marauders, written mainly by Moony, although Padfoot and Prongs…helped. Sorry Wormtail._

Teddy remained confused at this point, wondering if his hair was going the traditional peach that he did when he was confused.

'I can see blatantly that you are confused. All you have to do is tap the inside of the folded sheet and state something you wish to know about. There hasn't been anything Marauder or Hogwarts related that hasn't come up with an entry so far. I thought you might like it, considering your love of books,' Harry said fondly. Teddy just stared blankly at the guide, 'I really had better go now, have fun with the guide. To hide it like the map, state 'Enlightenment achieved', alright? Not as catchy as the map, I know.'

Harry sped off up the stairs. Teddy just continued staring at the page, not sure what to make of it.

How is THAT more exciting than a map?


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N **This fic doesn't seem to be as popular as the last [ A lot of people were calling for me to extend Teddy's first story, but there wasn't really much else I could do! Basic chapter going on here, plot should start next time, but I haven't decided yet.

'Alright, Ted?' Darcy asked, smiling, but remaining glued to her seat.

'Teddy! How are you?' Jackie, Darcy's twin sister, flung her arms around Teddy and squeezed him tightly.

Jackie and Darcy O'Brien were Teddy's best friends. They were, along with him, the only Gryffindors in their year. Apparently this was the same in a lot of wizarding schools across the world, not many children had been born the year Teddy and the twins had. Both girls spoke with a thick Irish accent and had straight, dark red hair. Jackie was the taller of the two, she had grown into a beautiful girl over the years, her hair reaching to about elbow length. Teddy always wondered why she wasn't so lucky with the boys, she was by a long shot, the best looking girl in the year. Darcy was shorter and stockier. She had the same good looks as her sister but chose not to show them. Darcy had short straight hair that had grown longer than the spiky cut she sported as a younger child. She had embraced her feminine side a little more and now had almost shoulder length hair.

Conversations pursued for a number of minutes between them all, mainly Jackie telling the holiday stories with Darcy interrupting her every so often. Teddy sat and listened patiently, he enjoyed spending time with the girls but they were serious hard work sometimes.

'So, Teddy, how was your summer?' Jackie asked, twirling a piece of hair in her hand.

'Um…boring to say the least,' Teddy said, grimacing, 'George helped me sort the shop, Ginny made me look after the kids for a couple of weekends, AGAIN!'

Teddy sat back, relaxed. Some light shone through the window and reflected off the gleaming badge on Teddy's chest when he moved. Darcy's jaw dropped.

'No.Way!' She uttered, 'Why didn't you tell us, Ted? Congratulations.'

Teddy went to smile at her, but his smile faltered when she smacked him across the arm.

'Ow! Merlin, Darcy, chill out will ya!' Teddy said, rubbing his arm vigorously.

The door to their compartment slid open, James Potter ran in and slid it shut behind him.

'Hey, Ted. Listen, mate, mind if I lay low here a while?' He said. 'It's just I put some melted Jelly Witches on the inside of Tim's robes again, and he isn't gonna be happy.'

James smiled a nervous smile that Teddy's father would have burst into fits of laughter about. Teddy didn't realise it was the ringleader of the Marauder's trademark.

'Yeah alright, just this once.' Teddy said. 'I cant be looking after you all this year you know, James. I've got work to do.'

'Yeah yeah, Ted. You never have had to look after me properly, you just chose to get involved.'

'What you mean like when those Seventh Years tried to beat you up last year after you drenched their beds with water?'

'Well, yeah…but it was nothing I couldn't handle myself. What about that time when the lake squid smothered you and was gonna suffocate you? What have you got to say to that, Teddy Remus Lupin!?'

'That was you, you tosspot.'

James' face fell. 'Oh, yeah. Listen, Ted, I better be back on that team of yours this year!'

'Yeah yeah no sweat James, just sod off now will ya?' Teddy said, after noticing the glazed looks on Jackie and Darcy's faces.

James smiled a toothy smile and left the compartment.

That evening, Teddy was sat up in his bed, curtains drawn to try and drown out the noise of the sixth years he had been made to share a dormitory with. He pulled out the _Guide_ from his pocket, and, seeing as he had nothing better to do, pulled his wand out and uttered the saying needed.

The image spread across the front of the page like before, and Teddy opened the booklet, lay his wand in the middle, and pondered something to search. He figured he would just search all of the things that he enjoyed in Hogwarts.

'Quidditch' Teddy decided on.

Instantly, words spread across the page and covered the inside of the folded paper. The title of the subject was clear across the top of the page. Teddy read on…

_Quidditch is a game for Kings. I will not bore you with the rules as I am currently at the mercy of one Mr. Moony as I am dictating this to you. Therefore, I apologise for any rushed vocabulary in this case._

_My friend, Mr. Padfoot here, would like to remind the reader that I, Prongs, am currently captain of the most successful Gryffindor Quidditch side ever to grace these walls. _

_Mr. Padfoot himself wishes to inform the reader that, despite what the accused may claim, there is no evidence to back up that Prongs has anything to do with the success of the Gryffindor Quidditch team._

_Mr. Wormtail seconds this notion._

_Mr. Moony also concurs but wishes to remind his compatriots that there are more pressing, and altogether worthwhile, subjects to be writing about in the Guide than this useless and downright dangerous game that Mr. Moony has had all to often the displeasure of watching._

That is the point that Teddy stopped reading. He closed the booklet, said the hiding phrase, turned the light on his wand out, lay down and pulled the covers of his duvet up to his neck.

He never wondered where his interest and talent in Quidditch came from. From what he had been told, his mother was clumsy and when Teddy had asked if she would have been a good Quidditch player, both Ginny and Harry laughed at the idea. They said she was a reasonable flier, but not a good enough flyer to play Quidditch.

_I always assumed I got my talent from Dad_ Teddy thought _I mean, he did have Harry's dad as a friend, I always figured they used to play together!_

Teddy thought about the words written by his father in the Guide. Why was he so arrogant? Why was he so cocky? Why was he so different to Teddy?

**A/N** Sorry! Difficult chapter to finish. I hope you will R&R this story, just to give me some reassurance that it is, in fact, readable. Next chapter will introduce the plotline of the story! WOOOOOOOO!!!!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N **Sorry for not updating, college work etc. y'all know how it is. Golden Nugget for whoever notices the video game reference.

**Disclaimer** As before!

_**October 18**__**th**__**, Teddy's Seventh Year**_

Light shone across Teddy's face, drawing him from his dream. His eyes snapped open and he sat up straight, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the light. Upon realising it was 8.30 and far too late for him to be up on a Saturday, Teddy scrambled out of bed and threw on a pair of baggy jeans and a warm-looking black long sleeved t-shirt. He pulled on his filthy trainers and went down to breakfast.

Teddy walked into the Great Hall and glanced over the Gryffindor table, looking for his friends. Teddy's forehead crinkled, he couldn't find them and normally Darcy would have called out across the Hall to him by now, causing his hair to go a deep pink, much to his embarrassment.

Finally, Teddy spotted his friends sat at the far end of the table, closest to the teachers. Jackie was reading her Daily Prophet as usual, but what Teddy noticed first was that Darcy was leaning over her shoulder and reading it too. She had a nail in her mouth and was chewing it rapidly, something Darcy always did when she was nervous. The second thing Teddy noticed was the thin figure of Professor McGonagall stood behind the girls, a worried look on her face, every now and again saying something that caused Jackie to nod silently.

Teddy remained where he was, in the doorway. His brow remained furrowed as he looked around the hall. Suddenly, he noticed that many students were nervously glancing up at him. What on earth was going on? Teddy shook some hair out of his eyes and strode over to his friends. It was a long walk anyway, but even longer when you were trying to pretend the whole world wasn't watching you.

McGonagall noticed Teddy and stood straight. She gave the girls what looked like a reassuring pat on the shoulder and briskly returned to her own seat. Jackie hastily rolled the paper up and began to pour herself a glass of pumpkin juice.

'What's going on?' Teddy said sternly, sitting across from the girls, staring intently at the both of them.

Darcy opened her mouth to speak, obviously considering what needed to be said before her sister cut her off.

'Nothing, Teddy.' Jackie said, taking a sip of her juice, 'You are up late for a Saturday.'

'Don't pretend nothing is going on, Jackie.' Teddy said, placing his hands flat upon the table. He closed his eyes for a second, trying to keep calm, before he opened them again and continued, 'I want to know, and you are going to tell me.'

Jackie placed her glass down and took a nervous glance across to Professor McGonagall, who motioned for Teddy to follow her.

Teddy stood and followed the headmistress out of the hall the way he came in, not embarrassed about his colleagues this time, only focused on finding out what was going on. McGonagall led him to her office, he had been a number of times to discuss his monthly 'problem' and sat down opposite the desk like he did every time.

'Well, Professor? What is-'

'I am going to tell you, Mr. Lupin. However, I need you to promise that you will read the article calmly.' McGonagall cut across him. She picked up her own rolled up copy of the Prophet and passed it to him. The article in question was etched over the front page.

_**Slytherist suspects on the run as body of werewolf is found near Hogsmeade**_

_Aurors are on the trail of two suspicious men, believed to be Slytherists Maya Enfield and Phoenix Bond, after the body of a 27 year old werewolf is found on the mountains behind Hogsmeade._

_The suspects in question are believed to be part of underground Slytherist group 'Cleanse', who are known only to have 5 members. This notorious society was believed to have been dismantled after their leader Miles Bond, brother of one of the suspects, was sent to Azkaban only 2 months ago._

_A Sytherist is a person who holds to the values of the ancient wizard from which their name comes from. Salazar Slytherin is known to have been against those who were not of 'pure-blood' to receive wizarding education or to play a major part in wizarding society. Slytherists are keen to uphold this policy and have been known to attack, kidnap or blackmail those who are not surplus to their requirements. The Ministry is keen to stress the safety of Muggle-Borns or those who may be prone to attack, and trained Aurors are being sent to wizarding institutions across the country._

Teddy stopped reading and lay the paper down on the table. His mouth thinned and he looked straight into Professor McGonagall's eyes.

'Surely,' he said slowly, 'Muggle-Borns across the country are more in danger than me.'

McGonagall sighed and leaned forwards, hands resting on the desk.

'I'm afraid, Teddy, that that may not be the case. Have you ever heard of the Slytherist group 'Cleanse'?'

Teddy shook his head slowly.

''Cleanse' have been known to target primarily those who they consider to not be pure human. As barbaric as it may seem, they consider themselves to be doing society a favour, if you will, by 'cleansing' society of all those who do not belong.'

Teddy winced. He reassured himself, they wouldn't go after him. They probably don't know he even exists; he isn't registered on the werewolf lists, nor is Bill Weasley. He was perfectly safe.

'What concerns us the most is that your father,' McGonagall paused, Teddy expected the worst, 'your father was once targeted by the movement during the time between Harry beating Lord Voldemort and him returning to power. Needless to say, your father fought them off bravely and was responsible for killing the 6th member of the 'Cleanse' Slytherist group, Manfred Enfield. It was your father, along with the Aurors of the ministry who drove the group underground, where every few years or so, they would act.'

Even though he was only 16 years old, Teddy considered himself to be a good enough duellist to look after himself. Surely they wouldn't attack here anyhow, they would never breach the walls of Hogwarts, not without an army.

'Harry is on his way, Teddy. He will fill you in with the details. To be honest, we are not expecting anything to happen, it would be too obvious from Maya Enfield and they know it is too risky to attempt to attack Hogwarts.' McGonagall smiled, 'Don't believe everything you read in the papers, Teddy, let me and Harry keep you informed. Don't worry about it and concentrate on your studies.'

Teddy nodded, staring at his knees, forehead still crinkled, mind spinning. He stood and turned towards the door, he reached out for the handle before McGonagall spoke again.

'Oh, and Teddy?' she said, causing Teddy to turn, 'Gryffindor's Quidditch trials have been booked for the 31st of this month. Pick my old house a good team, will you?'

Teddy forced a smile, which disappeared as soon as he turned round, and walked down the spiral staircase. As he got to the bottom, he strode off towards the common room.

Teddy kicked the air with anger.

'Get on with my studies?' He said outloud, '_Get on with my studies?!_ Yeah alright. Just ignore those murderers, Teddy. You'll never get anywhere in life without your NEWTs.'

**A/N **Please please please leave a review! I feel a little neglected!


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N** Finally have an update! Thanks to my reviewers you all rule.

**Disclaimer **Meh…

Teddy spent the morning trying to calm down in his dormitory. He sat on his bed, curtains drawn and got on with some DADA work. The day drew on and Teddy slaved away at his latest essay, any feelings for the morning's drama floating to the back of his mind.

Down in the common room, Jackie and Darcy sat in front of the fire. Darcy was doodling on what looked like the beginnings of her own DADA essay, and Jackie was flicking rapidly through a Care of Magical Creatures essay. It was a Hogsmeade weekend this week, and many students had left to go into the town, most ignoring the headline of the morning's news. The Common Room was quiet, with some first and second years filtering in and out at various intervals, but a larger hush enveloped those few in the room when they spotted the next entrant.

Harry Potter stepped slowly into the common room, smiling slightly to himself and looking around. Nothing had changed, not even the battered old chairs, one bearing Harry's mark; a small picture of a snitch was etched into the leather arm of the seat closest to the fire, a picture added by Harry during his second year.

Darcy and Jackie looked up and smiled, not affected by the contagious feeling of awe that surrounded all those that do not know Harry Potter every time they meet him. Darcy noticed this and scoffed quietly, she felt it was quite time to break the silence.

'Afternoon, Harry,' Darcy said, waving lazily from her seat, 'You alright?'

Harry smiled back, 'Yes thanks, Darce. Hey Jackie, where's Teddy?'

'Upstairs, doing his Defence essay, he always does Defence on his own,' Jackie replied, grimacing slightly. Harry knew Teddy's friends had to get used to his independent nature.

Harry nodded in acknowledgement and scratched the back of his head, embarrassed, as he noticed the young children still staring at him, open mouthed. He decided it was best to get out of their way so he scaled the stairs to the seventh year dorm.

The door creaked open, as it always did, and Harry spotted his Godson's bed, with the curtains drawn round it, the unmistakable scrawl of a quill echoing through the stone room.

'Not disturbing anything, am I, Ted?' Harry asked, walking over to the bed.

Teddy pulled back the curtains and hastily packed his papers into a pile and put them atop his bedside table, ruining the immaculate appearance of his sector of the room.

'Nope, it's no problem, Harry.' Teddy said.

'I expect you know why I'm here?' Harry said, taking a seat at the end of Teddy's bed.

'Yup, there isn't any need to check on me though, I'm fine,' Teddy said, smiling slightly and pushing his fringe off his eyes.

'You need to get your hair cut, sonny.' Harry said, laughing slightly, 'I'm sure Ginny can do it for you on Halloween weekend.' Teddy and James always returned home on the weekend after Halloween, Mrs. Weasley always had a large feast for her extended family. 'And for your information, I know you can look after yourself, and I know you don't want any help, I just figured, I'm in the neighbourhood, so I may as well pay a visit!'

'Liar!' Teddy said, 'If you were me, your hair would have turned green!'

'OK I was lying, I just came to check up on you. I know you are too much like your father to want help from anyone else, you don't want to impose yourself, but I just want to make sure you understand the whole situation, that's all. Well, do you have any questions?'

'Not really,' Teddy replied, crossing his legs on the bed, 'Just wondering, do you have any leads?'

'Nope, cant say we have. Ron is down in Hogsmeade interviewing the witness at the Hogs Head.' Teddy scoffed, 'I know, lets just say its not the most effective scene for Ron to interview anyone. We are gonna set a team or two round Hogsmeade, but there aren't any specific threats on individuals to speak of, so we are fairly relaxed.'

Teddy nodded. He tried not to show his relief, he wanted Harry to see he was a strong character, this wasn't going to affect him. He just had one more question…

'Harry, how brave was my father?' Teddy asked quietly. Harry smiled and turned to face Teddy more.

'He was one of the bravest men I knew, Ted. I know I have told countless times, but your father was willing to sacrifice being happy with your mother, just so he could protect her. He was willing to give up his job, just so Dumbledore didn't get pressurised into getting rid of him when word of his condition got out. He stalked Death Eater Dolohov all around the castle, to stop him killing any more children after Colin Creevy. He sacrificed his life for you, your mother, me, the whole wizarding world. To be honest, he never was commended enough throughout his life, he was such a modest man.'

Harry finished, and Teddy looked down at his feet. Harry saw it as his moment to leave and stood, ruffled Teddy's hair like he used to do when his Godson was tiny, and left the room. The door creaked shut and Teddy sat and began to rub his feet.

A surge of guilt rose through Teddy as he thought back at all the nasty things he had thought and said about his father and Harry. Harry so much wanted Teddy to be like his father, he almost assumed Teddy would be, but Teddy wasn't sure he was that same person. Harry had raised him and taken care of him like a son. He had sacrificed time with his wife and kids so he could look after Teddy on a particularly bad full moon during school time. Teddy knew Harry did this for no want of reward, in fact Harry saw Teddy as a son, but Teddy still felt indebted to his Godfather.

And as for his father…Teddy was nothing like him. He was handsome, brave, loyal, everything a great person should be. As far as Teddy was concerned, he wasn't any of those things. Loyal? Yeah but not enough, look how he treats Harry sometimes, look how he leaves his friends so he can be alone. Handsome? That's a riot, no girl wants to go near him, he has scars etched into his skin. Brave? 17 years old and needs his Godfather to reassure him. Sounds brave to me…


	6. Chapter 6

'No, Hannah! Don't fly that way you are right in the path of-'

Teddy winced as he heard the thud of the bludger against Hannah's side. He sped underneath her to rescue the falling Quaffle and gave James an exasperated look as the young Potter grinned evilly. This happened every year. More and more second years would come and trial for the Quidditch team, and more and more of them would get shot down, almost literally, by James Potter.

Teddy blew his whistle. 'Alright, that's it guys! Thanks for coming. I'll post the squad list up on the common room notice board either tonight or before breakfast tomorrow.'

All the Gryffindors lowered themselves to ground slowly. It was getting dark and the Halloween feast was due to start in about an hour. Teddy collected up the training balls and tried to wrestle the bludger into their straps. Darcy swiftly swooped down and shut the snitch in its compartment. Teddy fastened the box and stood, carrying the box by the handle. He could see many a wand shining, illuminating students heading towards the common room, some were flying, some were walking with their friends, looking dejected. Teddy let out a sigh, he will disappoint many people with his decision, but it is his job to choose the best people for the team.

The friends were joined by Jackie at the entrance to the store cupboard by the changing rooms. Darcy stuffed the box down by the other training sets and headed off into a changing room, followed by Jackie. Teddy grinned at the girls as he jokingly made to follow them, before veering off into the adjacent changing room.

Teddy sat on the bench, yawned, and messed his hair up a little. He lifted his feet up onto the bench and began untying his high-topped brown leather Quidditch boots.

_Not a bad team this year_ Teddy thought to himself. He wasn't far wrong either. He had already decided on the starters, tomorrow he would decide on the direct reserves for each position. Obviously, Teddy and Darcy would remain at Keeper and Seeker respectively. Teddy did not keep his best friend there for the sake of it either, she was such a natural seeker and the competition had no chance against her. James was, again, the best beater by a long shot. He plays like he lives, loud, laidback and laughing. Teddy sniggered to himself, he was so much like George it was frightening. James would be paired up with a girl from his year, and last years other beater, Athena Martins. She was a strong player, and possibly more tactically aware than James. The chasers were what was the most different this year. Two second years had stood out, best friends George Peeking and Richard Powers. They would be teamed up with Kairi Breakon from the year below Teddy. She had a perfect radar and would add more consistency to the team than the two unpredictable friends might.

Teddy had washed and changed into his evening robes quickly. These were black trousers with black shoes, a black shirt with red and gold lining, his black coat sporting the same lining and a perfectly straight black hat. Teddy hated this uniform, they had to wear it on all the special occasions, from Halloween, to Christmas if they were in school, to the Battle of Hogwarts anniversary in the summer. He walked out of his room and knocked on the door of the other changing room.

'You guys finished yet?' Teddy called, ear pressed against the door.

'Uh…no.' He heard Jackie say, 'We might be a while, Darcy has just had a fight with the shower head. Go on without us.'

Teddy smiled to himself, called back that he would see the girls there, and slung his kitbag over his shoulder, preparing himself to brave the cold.

The cold wind stung Teddy's face, possibly lightening the colour of his hair. He shivered and rubbed his hands together before pulling out his wand and performing a quick _Lumos_ which he hoped would warm him up. It didn't do much to warm him, the small radiation of heat was sensed by Teddy, but it didn't affect him the way he would have liked. Teddy sped up so much that he didn't notice the kitbag in front of him, and thus tripped right over it, flat on his face.

Teddy stood and cursed himself, he was so naturally clumsy. He brushed his robes down, luckily it was frosty so he didn't get dirty like he would if it was wet. Teddy reached down and opened the kitbag, pointing his wand at the contents in order to expose the irresponsible owner. He saw a generic pair of boots and gloves, before spotting a rather shiny bat. Teddy rolled it over in his hands, and he immediately knew the owner by the inscription on one side.

_Happy 12__th__ Birthday James! Hope you have a good one. Use this well. Uncle George._

It was a state of the art bat that James wouldn't leave lying around. Teddy's annoyance at his almost-brother subsided after realising the James would never leave this bat, his most prized possession, just lying around, even if he wanted Teddy to trip over his bag. Teddy stood and looked around.

'James?' He called out, straining his eyes to see into the dark. When he looked just off the path to the right, he saw a small ounce of light radiating from the ground.

Carrying his wand as his torch, Teddy stepped over the bush in his way and strode over to the light on the floor. He stopped at the source of the light and saw a wand emitting the spell. Picking up the wand, Teddy knew exactly whose wand this was.

'Come on now James,' Teddy yelled, feeling slightly unwary, 'This some kind of Halloween stunt? The feast starts soon.'

Teddy stood still, looking around swiftly, in the back of his mind, he was wary of the danger, but Teddy had the thought of a traditional James Potter prank at the forefront of his mind.

He stood for what felt like a couple of minutes, before he was startled by a thud coming from the entrance to the Forbidden Forest. The thud was followed up with some mumbling and loud rustling. Teddy started towards the forbidden forest, both wands held aloft, determined to catch the young Potter mid-prank.

As he passed the first tree, however, Teddy spotted a flare of red sticking out from the side of one of the trees. This particular shade of red was well known in his family. Nobody could mistake the colour of Weasley-red. Teddy could see the shadow of a body partly leaning against the tree, and he sprinted over to see what the problem was.

James was leaned against the tree, one hand clutching his head, eyes tight shut. He was gritting his teeth and grasping grass with his other hand. Teddy, sick with worry, grabbed James's shoulders with both hands and squeezed them tightly, making the young boy wince slightly.

'James, what is going on?' Teddy said severely, 'Is this some kind of joke? Did some Slytherins get you?'

James opened his eyes and sat up slightly, wincing as he did so, He opened his mouth to speak, but Teddy's question was answered for him by another voice.

'This young boy unfortunately happened to get ambushed mistakenly.' A sly voice crept out of the shadows and a large man stepped out, grinning from ear to ear, 'My name is Phoenix Bond, nice of you to join us, Teddy Lupin!'

Bond was tall and stocky, dressed shoulder to toe in black. His face was shadowed, dark eyes glaring into Teddy's. The only thing that seemed out of place with this man was his smile. It was small, sinister, and showed perfectly white, straight teeth. Bond took another two steps towards Teddy, waving some jet black hair out of his face, wand raised.

Teddy suddenly became alert to the danger and sprung up in front of James, knees bent and both his own wand and James's pointing at the heart of Bond.

'Don't you dare use my name. Stop where you are, and explain. Why did you attack James.' Teddy uttered, his own hair falling across his eyes. Teddy was putting on his best brave face, but it was clear in the jumps of his voice that he was scared.

'Frightened, boy? I take it you know who I am then. This is good, this is good. I think I can spare a moment to give you an answer' Bond replied, grin still plastered across his face, 'It is simple really, this boy we thought was you-'

'We?' Teddy cut across him, a slight air of panic emanating through his voice.

'Yes, we, and don't be so rude. I was joined by my partner, Maya Enfield, but she has returned to our base. Ah you have heard of her too!' Bond added, registering Teddy's slight wince at the name of his partner, 'So, where was I? Ah yes! So we thought this boy was you, realised he wasn't and fled to prepare another ambush. However, this young boy was foolish enough to follow us and not bring his wand, so we dealt with him.'

Teddy looked down at James, who appeared to not have registered what Bond was saying. Both of his hands were pressing hard on the sides of his head, face strained with considerable pain.

'However, in light of recent events, we might just have to change our plan a little bit.' Bond continued, 'We can thank you for that, Teddy Lupin.' He added.

'Thank me? For what?' Teddy replied, eyes darting back to Bond.

'For telling us the name of this young boy, of course!' Bond said, grin widening, 'Had we not been told this boy's name was James, we would have left him as another useless child. But no, you gave us the information we needed to deduce that this boy is, in fact, James Potter.'

Teddy gritted his teeth, lowering his stance a little, 'No he isn't. What are you talking about? This is James O'Brien, for your information he is a pure-blood son of Gryffindor.'

'Don't lie to me, wolf boy!' Bond shouted, grin disappearing, eyes maddening, 'Do not take me for a fool! Did you not think that any self respecting wizard in this country could not recognise the son of Harry Potter? I accept it took us a while, but we needed to establish where our target was.'

Teddy looked at his feet, shaking with a mixture of cold, fear and rage. His glance shot back up to Bond and he muttered, 'I don't think I want to hang around and find out who that target actually is.'

On that note, Teddy sprung into action. He fired two well placed stunning spells at bond, one from each wand, knocking him off his feet. He spun round and put his arm under James's shoulder, hauling him to his feet.

'James, you have to help me!' Teddy begged, trying to drag the boy with him. James obliged and tried to put his feet to good use.

However, they were going nowhere fast and didn't even reach the edge of the forest before Bond was heard steaming up behind them, cackling with laughter as if this was a game. Teddy pushed James to the ground beside him, and hopefully safety, before turning and preparing himself for another attack.

'_Protego!_' Teddy yelled, blue light being emitted from both wands forming a shield around him.

'That's not going to be good enough, Teddy Lupin.' Bond said quietly, edging slowly up to Teddy. He stopped around 2 metres in front of him. Teddy was frozen with fear, trying to concentrate on keeping his barrier strong as his feet would not aid the situation by moving. The grin returned to Bond's face as he lifted his wand and uttered a spell Teddy had feared. '_Crucio_!'

Teddy's barrier split like a seam and the red light caught Teddy square in the chest, he was shot backwards a couple of metres and he landed roughly on the turf just outside the forest. Pain seared through Teddy in the same way it did at the full moon. Teddy coiled up in pain and gritted his teeth, trying not to yell. The pain was excruciating, but through it, he heard James yell and saw through blurred eyes Bond drag James back into the forest. The pain subsided slightly and Teddy tried to clamber to his feet, tears streaming down his face in desperation and pain.

As if it was in slow-motion, Bond turned and pointed his wand at Teddy. Teddy could see James's desperate face trying to escape the grip of Bond's left hand. Bond's mouth moved and a jet of purple light escaped the tip of his wand and struck Teddy again in the chest.

Teddy continued to struggle to his feet, but his surroundings became blurry and his head, dizzy, before he collapsed on his face in the grass, hair a sickly green colour.

**A/N **Whew! Longest chapter so far. Hope you liked it! Now…back to Biology revision.


	7. Chapter 7

'_Ennervate'_

Teddy Lupin's eyes opened slowly. A dark image blurred across his vision as he stirred, eyelids blinking rapidly to restore his senses.

'What happened, Ted?' said a calm voice.

Teddy screwed his eyes together for a second and opened them again, staring into the round face of Professor Neville Longbottom who was leaning over him, his face almost silhouetted against the light from the stars in the sky behind him.

'Ted?' Professor Longbottom whispered, voice a little more stern 'Teddy, answer me.'

Teddy bit his lip to try and remember himself. His eyebrows scrunched as he battled his headache. He lay still for a few seconds before the sudden air of realisation hit him. Teddy sat bolt upright, almost taking his head of house out in the process.

'He took James.' Teddy mumbled. He regretted sitting up immediately as the whole world spun before him, he tried to steady himself by putting a hand on his temple and squeezing his eyes shut. Professor Longbottom gripped Teddy tightly on the shoulders.

'Are you serious? James…James Potter is gone?' Neville let Teddy lay back down on the grass, his own head whirling about the next course of action.

'It's okay, Teddy. Just stay still.' The Professor said, acknowledging the state the seventh year was in.

With that, the Professor shot a fantastic beam of bright green sparks into the air from his wand, and did nothing to stop Teddy falling back into his deep sleep.

* * *

'Miss O'Brien, I think it is highly inappropriate that you-'

'I don't care'

'Miss O'Brien, come back here this instant, the poor boy is in no state to see anyone, he wont even know you are here!'

'Oh come on, Madam Pomfrey, surely you can let me and my sister sit for a little while. Professor McGonagall will be here soon anyway, so we will need to know the details. Where better to wait but right here! It saves the poor Professor a trip up the tower stairs, correct?'

'Oh, if you must. Please tell your sister to calm down, though. I don't want to be having the same episode as last Quidditch cup final.'

'Yes, ma'am, I'll keep an eye on her.'

The two girls closed the curtain half way around Teddy's bed. There was no need for it, as he was the only person in the Hospital Wing, but they decided it would be better than having the prying eyes of Madam Pomfrey watching their every move.

Darcy sat down next to Teddy's bedside table, while Jackie stood at the end of the bed. Darcy lay a couple of fingers on his forehead, brushing away some jet black hair in the process. A couple of seconds later, she was rummaging through the drawer of the bedside table.

'What's the problem, Darce?' Jackie said, grinning at her sister's urgency.

'He's freezing, Jack. There should be a blanket in here somewhere. Oh, I hate these enchanted cupboards, I swear it's like a Tardis in here…Aha!' Darcy pulled out a large, dirty pink coloured blanket and lay it over her best friend, covering him up to the chin, 'See, if we weren't here, the poor guy would have frozen!'

'Yes well, we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for my negotiation skills, you cant just come barging into the hospital wing like that.' Jackie sneered at her sister.

Darcy narrowed her eyes. Before she could fire a comeback at her twin, the large doors to the hospital wing creaked open and two people walked in.

Professor McGonagall strode into the Hospital Wing, still in her trademark best purple flowing robes, hair in an uncharacteristic messy bun. Behind her, Harry Potter walked in, pale. He followed McGonagall over to Teddy's bed, however being sure to stay a couple of steps behind her.

McGonagall pulled the curtain into the corner and Darcy jumped up to stand with her sister. Both girls smiled politely when greeted with a quick nod of recognition from their best friend's guardian.

'How long have you been here, girls?' Professor McGonagall addressed them, voice firm but face strained with worry.

'Not long, a couple of minutes.' Jackie answered promptly, Darcy nodding in agreement.

Professor McGonagall pulled a rebellious hair out of the young boy's face, 'Has he stirred?'

Jackie shook her head as McGonagall placed a couple of fingers on Teddy's forehead.

'He's deathly cold.' Darcy winced at McGonagall's choice of language, and noticed Harry's eyebrows shoot down, crinkling his forehead. McGonagall took her eyes off Teddy for the first time, and stood straight to address the twins.

'Do you know what happened?' She asked them.

Darcy and Jackie told the story of after the Quidditch trial. Of how they were the last ones to change and leave from the stadium, of how Teddy went on ahead of them, and of how they brought James's things back to the common room, assuming he had left them, before heading to the Great Hall to realise both boys were nowhere to be seen.

'We waited until the feast was well underway before we became worried. We just assumed they would be fooling around somewhere; it's what they're like. After we asked some other Gryffindors if they had been seen, we decided to notify the teachers, especially after the news report of the other week.' Jackie finished, trailing off in the last section of the sentence.

Silence echoed through the room for a few seconds, as McGonagall pieced together the night's events, nobody yet knew what happened to Teddy and James, just what happened either side of the event. Could it really be _them_?

'Wait a minute,' Darcy said, breaking the Headmistress's trail of thought, 'Where is James anyway?'

Harry's eyes closed as McGonagall took a deep sigh.

'All we know is that he is gone. Mr. Lupin spoke with Professor Longbottom for a minute or two before he passed out outside. He said that James was gone and someone, a 'he', took him.' McGonagall said professionally, although shooting a quick apologetic glance at Harry as he opened his eyes again.

Jackie and Darcy's eyes shot back down to their feet, Darcy felt as if she had been hit in the stomach by a bludger. James, gone? Why would someone do that? The girls were both close to James, they spent many a summer at Godric's Hollow with the Potter's, so they were both genuinely worried about their friend.

Again, nobody said a word. Harry had not said anything since he had entered the room, his eyes still transfixed on his godson. Teddy was breathing slowly, hair fading from jet black to dark brown to a dark blue, brow furrowed, skin pale.

'I think,' McGonagall said slowly, 'It is time to see if young Mr. Lupin can tell us what happened.'

**A/N **Wooo another chapter. Hope everyone liked it, please tell me what you think! Another chapter should be up today, maybe tomorrow!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N **Wooah! 2 chapters in one day! You lucky people!

Teddy opened his eyes slowly, wincing at the light radiating off the white curtains around his bed. The image in front of him took a few seconds to focus, but Teddy wished it never had done at all. To his right, McGonagall stood, just watching him, the twins were at the end of the bed, Jackie clinging to Darcy's arm, both looked very tired.

And then there was Harry.

He was looking Teddy straight in the eye. Teddy couldn't take the eye contact with his godfather and broke the connection, taking the chance to sit up, and lean against the headboard, breathing in a sharp intake of air as he did so, his ribs were very sore.

For a moment, nobody said a word. Teddy just looked straight down at the bed, one hand on his ribs. Again, it was Darcy who broke the silence.

'Ted…' She rushed over to the opposite side of the bed to McGonagall and put a hand on his back, withdrawing it immediately as he winced.

'Sorry..' Darcy said, 'Ted, are you alright?'

Teddy bit his lit, clearly holding back tears. He turned to face his friend and looked her straight in the eye, before smiling slightly and nodding.

As far as Teddy was concerned, how he was and how he fared was not important. What was important was finding James. The first thing he needed to do was address his Godfather. Teddy took his eyes off Darcy and looked meekly at Harry, struggling to combat the lump in his throat.

'I'm sorry, Harry,' Teddy said so quietly that nobody else further away than Harry would hear him, 'It's all my fault.'

Harry's emerald eyes sparkled through the tears as he nodded, still not able to say a word, still not able to move from the spot at the end of his Godson's bed. The two retained eye contact, Teddy defiantly so, before McGonagall cut them off.

'Mr. Lupin,' she said curtly, 'I know it may be difficult for you, but it is imperative that we understand what happened. So, if you are up to it, we would like you to tell us exactly what happened this evening.'

Teddy nodded and adjusted himself on the bed so that he was more comfortable. His eyes focused back on the dirty blanket, and he started rubbing his feet with his hands; a habit he had gotten into as a child when he was in pain. Teddy took a deep breath and started his story.

Nobody said a word throughout the first part of Teddy's story. Teddy had told of the trial, of how nothing was out of the ordinary at that point, and of how he had left the girls to go to the feast. He then told of finding James's stuff, and then his wand, by the path nearing the entrance to the forest. Teddy paused and mentioned seeing James lying against a tree just inside the forest, clutching his head as if it had been struck.

At this, Harry took in a sharp intake of breath himself. Teddy felt a large pang of guilt in the back of his throat, steadied himself and continued the story.

Teddy cut down the 'fight' with Bond to make it easier for him to remember. He told about arguing with Bond and asking about his partner. However, Teddy choked as he was about to tell why Bond knew who James was. He felt so guilty that he slipped up on James's name that he screwed his face up, causing a tear to drop onto the blanket in front of him. Darcy put a hand on his shoulder, but Teddy felt more guilty that he was crying, it was Harry who should be crying. He brushed away Darcy's hand and looked up at the Headmistress.

Teddy brushed the tear away quickly and continued, 'I told him…It's my fault he knew James was James Potter. I asked why he ambushed James, and Bond just said he had the wrong 'target', but then…the he thanked me for telling him James was the s-son of Harry Potter. I assume that's why he took James instead of me.'

The story finished and Teddy's gaze returned to the bed. Darcy stood and returned to her spot next to her sister, and Harry had taken his gaze off his Godson and looked at the floor.

'Would you be able to give a description of Phoenix Bond, Mr. Lupin?' McGonagall asked.

Teddy nodded firmly and tried to regain control of himself. He didn't see the need to reveal how he was in the state he was on; they were just useless facts, no help in finding James.

'Harry, is this enough information for your team to start a search?' McGonagall asked, turning her attention to Harry, who nodded. 'I suppose the description of the assailant can wait until Mr. Lupin is in a better state?'

Again Harry nodded not saying a word, Teddy tried to protest that he could do the description now, but McGonagall forced him back down into bed. Harry smiled a fake smile at the group and turned to leave.

'Harry…' Teddy called after his godfather.

Harry stopped and turned his head slightly.

'Ted, does James have his wand?' he asked, voice hoarse.

'I…I don't know. I fought with it because James couldn't. It helped me, double the strength, I guess it is just outside where I passed out…' Teddy replied guiltily.

'Mr. Potter's wand was discovered next to Mr. Lupin's outside. I have it for you if you want it, Harry.' McGonagall said.

Harry nodded, 'Get better, Ted. I'll see you in the morning.'

Without turning, Harry left the room, followed by McGonagall, leaving Teddy alone with the twins.

Teddy slouched back against the headrest, grimacing as the pain shot through his ribs. The girls moved to either side of his bed.

'Sorry we weren't there with you, Teddy.' Jackie said, sympathetically, 'we would probably have been able to help you.'

Teddy shook his head, 'He was too strong, I could do nothing. I had two wands you know, and I couldn't even shield myself. So much for being a smart wizard, fat lot of good intelligence does for you in the real world.'

'Ted, don't be stupid. You did the right thing.' Darcy ignored Teddy's stare, 'How are you hurt?'

'I'm not. I'm fine. And I'm gonna leave this place first thing tomorrow morning and help Harry with finding James.'

Both girls looked at Teddy on the verge of tears.

'You aren't here for no reason, Teddy.' Jackie said, 'What did he do to you?'

Teddy shrugged, although he knew full well what Bond did to him, he used the Cruciatus curse, but teddy didn't need to be treated like a hero.

'I'm gonna go to sleep now,' Teddy said defiantly, lying himself down and pulling the covers over his head, 'Ill find you tomorrow, maybe.'

Jackie and Darcy sighed. They had been through this before. He was so stubbornly independent that he wouldn't accept help from anyone who offered it. They both rose silently and left the room to go back to the common room, leaving Teddy Lupin to hatch his plan to find James Potter.

**A/N **Ouch sorry for the angsty-ness. I didn't think there was any way around it though. Sorry if people didn't like Harry's character, I decided his mind would be a little messed up, and it is. I'll delve into that a bit more soonage! Let us no what you think….R&R!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N **Been a while huh? This bit is going to be hard to put down, I need to pace it right…hmmm well here goes!!

**Disclaimer** as before

Teddy woke up quite late the next morning. The sun was shining on his face through the open window, much to his eye's discomfort. He just sat up in his bed and closed his eyes to block out the light.

At around 9 o'clock, he had had his first visitor. The tired looking blue eyes of Ron Weasley peeked round the door before sneaking into the hospital wing and sitting with Teddy. He smiled warmly at Teddy and rubbed his shoulder, but let go as he received a hard faced stare from the seventh year. Ron laughed and sat back.

'When they letting you out, Teddy?' He asked quietly, trying not to alert Madam Pomfrey.

Teddy kept his face straight, 'I don't know, but I'm out of here in a couple of hours.'

Ron looked puzzled, 'You shouldn't just rush yourself out you know. You went through a lot of shit last night.'

Teddy sighed, his stony demeanour diminishing for a second, 'I want to help, and it's my fault after all.'

'Don't be stupid, Teddy. You did better than you should have done. This guy sounds like a bit of a beast if you ask me.'

'That's a bit casual for someone who has to try and stop him' Teddy said, staring at the sheets.

Ron laughed again, 'We have the whole team on it. I know you're worried, and you're hurt, but…we will find James,' he finished, face turning serious.

'I am worried, I feel guilty about it, and there is nothing wrong with me. I am going to help.'

'How did I know you were gonna say that?' Ron said, before answering his own question, 'You are just like your father.'

Teddy shot him a look of contempt. He hated when people said that. _Anyway_ he thought to himself _he would have done better than me last night. _

'Anyway' Ron continued, 'Lets have a description of this guy then shall we.'

Teddy thought to argue but decided against it, and gave Ron his description of Phoenix Bond. As a result of the description, Ron managed to get Teddy out of the wing and back to the common room, on the condition that he waits for Harry to come and see him.

Surely enough, early afternoon saw the frame of Harry Potter gingerly clamber through the portrait hole again. Like last time, the girls were sat in the common room, Jackie working, Darcy shining her broom. The girls didn't have to say a word to let Harry know where his godson was, Harry knew just as well as they did that Teddy wouldn't want to talk to them.

Harry acknowledged the girls with a quick nod and stepped up the stairs to the dorm he visited oh so recently. Again, Teddy was the only one there, and was sat on his bed, reading through a book entitled _Defence: A Swift Guide to Looking After Yourself_. Harry walked over, took the book of Teddy, threw it on the floor and sat on the bed.

Teddy refused to look at his godfather, 'Hi Harry.'

'Afternoon, Ted. How are you feeling?' Harry said, voice hoarse.

'There is nothing wrong with me.' Teddy said slowly, looking up into Harry's bloodshot eyes, 'Have you found Bond yet?'

Harry shook his head, 'I need you to make me a promise, Ted.'

'Let me guess, don't follow and try to find James?' Teddy said stonily, although a pang of guilt shot through him at the resentment he was showing to his guardian.

'You're a smart kid, Ted.' Harry said sadly, 'Ginny will pick you up at 10 tonight and you can come back to Godric's like you would have done anyway. Molly is insistent that we don't let what's happened stop the family Halloween feast, you just might be a little short of numbers with the investigation going on.'

Teddy's head hurt. He wanted to say so much to Harry about how he was sorry and how he would use all of his power to find James, but the words just wouldn't come out. Harry recognised the expression.

'Stop it, Ted. You are pulling a Remus on us here. It isn't your fault, let us handle it and get better. I don't blame you.' He added quietly.

Teddy nodded and Harry took his leave. The door creaked shut behind Harry and he slumped against the cold stone on the other side. A pain rippled through Harry as it had done since he heard the news. Ron had come running, saying that Teddy had been found on the grounds shouting that James had been kidnapped, and that Teddy was now unconscious in the hospital wing.

What worried Harry the most was not the safety of his son, he knew James would look after himself enough to stay safe before he was found, it was Teddy. Harry had not yet thought it consciously, but part of him knew where he stood.

_I don't blame you._ His own voice echoed around his head, Harry knew what it meant.

He had lied.

Maybe it was the paternal instincts, looking for someone to blame, but it didn't stop Harry feeling guilty. He was blaming a seventeen year old boy for not being able to fight off a terrorist. He knew the his department had no leads, and that it was a blind search for a terrorist group they have no ideas about. Harry's morale had, for the first time, collapsed around him. Even during the war, he had never felt this hopeless and in need of help. He rubbed his eyes and muttered out loud word that, in the grand scheme of things, would turn out to be very important.

'I cant do this alone.'

Many miles away, the eyes of a man snapped open for the first time in 19 years.

**A/N** Hmm.. not sure about this chapter. Hope you all can tactically work out who it is now! New chapter soon!


	10. Chapter 10

Rain began pouring over the hills surrounding Hogwarts, the large black cloud would soon be upon them, but that didn't bother Ron in the slightest. His slightly-too-long hair was being swept across his face as he paced briskly back and forth. He was rubbing his chin, trying to gather some sort of idea from the depths of his mind. He was so focused in doing so, the brisk steps of his red-faced best friend on the stone steps did not disturb him.

'Ron.' Harry acknowledged, not stopping, 'Time to go.'

Ron snapped out of his trance, nodded briefly and set off at the same pace as Harry towards the Hogwarts main gates.

The main gates were not something that was around during the men's time at the school. They were put in as an easy access point to the school, floo networks would get easily clogged up, especially around the Battle of Hogwarts anniversary.

Harry uttered the pass-spell and the gates creaked open. Again, Harry strode off, leaving Ron to trailing behind him.

'Harry,' Ron said, slightly breathless, 'What did you-'

'I told Teddy to stay.' Harry interrupted, 'Ginny will pick him up tonight for the Halloween weekend. Things will conduct as normal, bar me you and James missing the festivities.'

Ron chose not to answer. He had suspected that Harry was not quite with it, not blaming him, of course. The moment Ron had found out, his own heart sank at the though a similar thing happening to young Hugo.

'Harry,' Ron said, stopping, 'Maybe you should stay out of this case, for your own sake.'

Harry stopped dead in his tracks and turned slowly. Ron grit his teeth, knowing that such a confrontational comment would bring about some reaction.

'Ron, you have been my friend since we were 11 years old. How you can consider me to be the sort of person to leave the search for my 14 year old son to everyone else escapes my logic.' Harry looked intensely into Ron's eyes, 'You wouldn't leave Hugo.'

Ron flinched slightly before deciding to leave the topic, and the two men continued down the road to Hogsmeade, where the rest of the team lay in wait of Teddy's description.

_**I've been wandering this corridor for hours.**_

_**There's no-one here, it's empty.**_

_**The black walls are lined with torches, light flickering off my eyes, giving me some kind of visibility.**_

_**I shouldn't be here, what is going on? I thought I was with my best friend…man my head must be screwed up, or this is some kind of dream, or trick. If it's a trick, boy am I gonna…**_

_**Enough of that now, where am I?**_

_**I push a piece of long hair out of my face and try to gain my bearings.**_

_**What do I remember?**_

_**I woke up in a dark room, just me alone. My body was stiff and my joints were painful. I lifted myself up and headed towards the only door in the room, this led to the series of corridors. I don't remember much else. I know my name, that's easy. I know where I SHOULD be, that's for sure. There's only one other thing I know for sure.**_

_**The handwriting on this note.**_

_**The elegant curls are known by most of the wizarding population of Britian! It was a simple note, but it was crumpled and looked old. It only said two sentences.**_

_If you are reading this, he needs you._

_Find him._

_**Hogwarts it is then.**_

Teddy had already made up his mind.

After spending the afternoon with the girls, trying to pretend he was alright, Teddy had decided what he was going to do. It was an easy decision.

At 9 o'clock that evening, Teddy began his preparation. An hour would be enough for him to prepare and reach the tunnel, so that Ginny would not pick him up.

Teddy pulled out an old backpack from under the bed after ensuring the dorm was empty. He shook the dust off it, before throwing in his Quidditch trainers and gloves, along with 2 sets of clean muggle clothes. He folded his uniform up and pulled on some scraggy jeans, a long sleeved t shirt, and a dark blue hoody. The only thing he would keep from his uniform was his crimson and gold scarf.

The next part was harder than he thought it would be. Teddy sat on his bed, quill and parchment at the ready. What would he write? He decided to keep it simple;

_I'm sorry Ginny, Jackie, Darcy. _

_Don't come and find me, I can look after myself. _

_Teddy._

Teddy placed the note neatly on top of his folded uniform. He studied the scene for a second before leaving the room and heading down a few floors to the 4th year dorm. Teddy creaked the door open slowly and peeked round the corner. He smiled at his luck, the room was empty.

Teddy knew which bed was James's so he ran over, scowled slightly at the messy demeanour, and opened his trunk.

_Good_ Teddy thought to himself _he keeps it right at the top of the trunk._

Teddy picked up the small piece of parchment and left the room. He got back up to his dorm, grabbed his broom, and was about to fly out of the small window before something hit him.

He was missing the most important thing to him.

Cursing, Teddy dropped his broom and scuttled over to the hangars by the door, he threw 6th year Eoin Hartley's coat on the floor and picked up his own long, brown trench coat.

Teddy smiled slightly as he put it on, slipping the Marauder's map in his pocket in the process. This was his favourite coat.

His father's coat.

Harry had given it to him when he started Hogwarts, only recently had he been able to fit into it. Ginny would, on many occasions, persist at him not to pick the thread of the elbow patches.

_Would he be proud of me?_ Teddy thought to himself before flying out of the window silently _Would he condone my decision?_

His thoughts wandered slightly as he activated the map and surveyed the area. Teddy was hidden behind a bush at the bottom of the tower, he couldn't see anyone, but it was better than taking the risk.

Dark eyes scanned the parchment, checking up on those near him. The closest to him was Neville, who was in the greenhouses. No problem there then. Jackie and Darcy were in the common room, so they would not have seen him leave. Just as Teddy started for the Whomping Willow, a movement on the parchment stopped him in his tracks.

A name had appeared in the tunnel from the tree to Hogsmeade. A name Teddy had seen many a time, but did not expect to see at this moment. A name that was running towards the school, in his tunnel.

Teddy froze. He stared in disbelief at the name. Teddy shook the parchment.

'Piece of crap.' He said to himself quietly, considering the parchment to be faulty.

But the name was still there.

It had stopped now, about halfway down the tunnel. _Time to go and investigate._

Silently casting the first spell he learnt, _Wingardium Leviosa_, Teddy dropped a rock onto the root of the tree, freezing it.

He slid into the small gap, dragging his broom and his bad behind him.

Wand out, Teddy began down the tunnel, heartbeat in his ears. Either the map was playing a trick on him (it had been known to insult him from time to time), or someone had confounded it so that they were listed as this name.

The darkness was terrifying. A curve in the tunnel was coming up, and Teddy could hear breathing round the corner. The faint light alerted Teddy to the close proximity between himself and the mystery person. Backing himself against the wall, Teddy shuffled along the tunnel, as silently as he could.

But he was not as quiet as he thought.

His deep breathing alerted the person, who came striding round the corner, wand held aloft, frowning at the face in front of him. The face of a young man clutching a wand, some parchment and a broomstick.

Teddy's jaw dropped. Even in the semi-dim light, Teddy knew exactly who this person was. The shaggy dark hair, the gaunt looking face, the dark grey eyes. The two stood in silence, the older man still looking at Teddy and his attire. Teddy decided the break the silence.

'Um, what is-'

'Where the hell did you get that coat?'


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N** Sorry sorry sorry its late! AS exams in January and things are getting a little tight!!

'Where the hell did you get that coat?'

Teddy was cut off abruptly by the man, and stumbled foolishly over his words. He cleared his throat, took a deep breath and began again.

'Um, this is my coat.' He said quietly, not taking his eyes off the person in front of him.

The man's eyes narrowed at Teddy's reply, before they began to scan over his attire and his belongings. The man's wand was still pointing at Teddy, square between his eyes.

'Let's just make this easy, alright?' he said, roughly, 'What's your name kid?'

Teddy was slightly taken aback by the rough tone, even slightly offended at being addressed as 'kid'.

'Teddy Lupin.' Teddy bluntly said, 'And you are Sirius Black.'

Sirius's eyes widened and he took a step backwards, as if to regain his balance. His wand lowered slowly and he took a couple of steps towards Teddy, Teddy's own wand arm faltered slightly too, and he retained eye contact.

'Ted Lupin? _Ted Lupin_?,' Sirius scoffed, taking Teddy by surprise, 'Ted Lupin is a baby! Not more than a few months old! Enough playing games, where's Harry?'

'What are you talking about?' Teddy said, quizzically, ignoring Sirius's request for his Godfather 'I am Teddy Lupin, and I'm 17 years old.'

Sirius folded his arms and smiled at Teddy. 'Prove it, I bet you can't.'

Teddy flashed a small grin and held out the Marauders Map to Sirius, who took it slowly off him, glanced over it, and threw it back, brow furrowed.

'I think…I am gonna need some information here, Ted Lupin.'

'Ginny? What brings you up here? Are you not taking Teddy?' Professor McGonagall exclaimed at the sight of a flustered looking Ginny Potter at the door of her Office.

'He's gone,' Ginny muttered, 'Teddy's gone. He left this.'

Ginny held out a small slip of paper, neatly folded into quarters, to her old Transfiguration teacher. McGonagall took it and read it silently, eyes closing as she let out a sigh upon finishing the note.

'I should have known he would have done this,' McGonagall said, 'He is remarkably like his parents; proud but painfully reckless.'

McGonagall motioned the pale faced woman into her office, her head spinning over just how much of a hash she had made of the situation.

'So…you are telling me, that you are 17 years old, son of Moony, and that Harry's son, called _James_ Potter, has been kidnapped by a bunch of Slytherin-loving crackpots.'

Teddy nodded slowly, carefully watching the man before him understand the situation.

'The last thing I remember was talking to Harry in the forest,' Sirius said, 'He was asking me about dying, we continued to walk then…I woke up.'

Teddy nodded again, eyes darting to the floor, 'Harry told me about the forest, he dropped the resurrection stone, but I think you guys helped him.'

Sirius smiled to himself and stood upright, brushing the dust from his back from where he had been leaning against the wall. He rubbed his hands together and put a hand on Teddy's shoulder.

'Anyway, enough of that,' Sirius said, 'Lets head back to the shack, you can fill me in with some more information, and then we are off to find Harry.'

Teddy smiled as he followed Sirius Black to the Shrieking Shack, his head was spinning slightly as he tried to comprehend who was in front of him.

_That man is Sirius Black!_

Teddy was almost angry with himself at the readiness of accepting the man in front of him to be his father's best friend, but the Marauders Map never lies. Being honest with himself, Teddy agreed that he probably would have accepted this man to be Sirius Black without the map, he was exactly as his family had described him, and he had seen many pictures.

The door to the shack creaked open, and Sirius locked it up behind him out of habit. He led Teddy silently up the stairs to the 'bedroom'. Teddy knew the way; he came here many times a year to do homework, to spend some time with the twins, or just to be by himself. He knew the shack well.

The two of them sat on opposite beds, Teddy dumping his backpack, his broom and the map on the floor with relief as he sat on the ripped bedspread.

'So…' Sirius said, 'Ted Lupin, eh? Couldn't see too well in the dark, but you don't half look like Moony.'

Teddy laughed and crossed his legs and his hands gripped his feet tightly, a habit he never was able to shake off too easily.

'So I have been told.' Teddy said, 'but I don't think he was as good a flier as I am, maybe that is just me growing up with Harry and the Weasleys.'

'Yeah I was gonna say, he never was much of a….wait! The Weasleys?' Sirius exclaimed abruptly.

Teddy looked at the man quizzically, 'Yeah the Weasleys, Harry married Ginny.'

A small twitch of a smile crept across Sirius's face.

'Ginny. Ginny Weasley.' Sirius said, eyes twinkling, 'That's funny. Me and your dad spent the whole of last, well actually it wouldn't have been last, summer talking about how she used to stare at him. Who'd have thought it? Ginny Weasley!' Sirius sat back against the wall, arms behind his head.

Teddy laughed slightly at Sirius's mix up with his years, but was full of admiration for the man before him, who took his situation with a pinch of salt. A long, but not uncomfortable, silence hung between them, before Teddy reminded himself on the fact that they were supposed to be looking for James.

'Sirius,' Teddy said, 'I ran away from school to look for James. I think it's time I left.'

He stood and began to pick his things up, before Sirius interrupted him.

'No worries, Ted.' Sirius said, 'As far as my natural supersonic intelligence tells me, I am here to help Harry. Now if that means finding young _James_,' he emphasised the name again with a grin, 'then I figure I had better come with, don't you think?'

Teddy smiled and nodded, his hair colour lightening from the dark, murky brown it had been in recent days, as he began to feel more content with himself, and delighted at his new companion.

'Ted,' Sirius said slowly, 'Did your hair colour just change?'

'Sorry, I forgot to tell you, I'm half-metamorphmagus.' Sirius looked puzzled, 'Comes from mum.' Teddy finished, Sirius's face brightening with sudden realisation.

Teddy did up his father's trench coat, and the two agreed to head to 'Sirius's cave' on the mountains alongside Hogsmeade, before concluding on where to begin their hunt.

**A/N** sorry shortish chapter, and a terrible one if I do say so. It is soooo hard to describe what they think of each other, I just figured they are both the kind of people to take it as it is and run with it! Update after Christmas, please R&R!!!


	12. Chapter 12

A/N Oops

**A/N Oops. Been a **_**little**_** while since an update.**

It was decided that the best thing to do was to wait until morning to continue the search. Teddy and Sirius spent the night in the cave on the hill beside Hogsmeade. Sirius requested that he be told everything that happened after the resurrection stone meeting with Harry. Teddy told the story in detail, constantly topping the magical fire up with his wand. The older man listened intently, his face falling when told of another loss to the group, even that of Severus Snape.

'Greasy git,' he interrupted Teddy's story, 'Why did he have to play the hero? He could have just told us, he was on the good side, then maybe we could have helped him, jerk.' Sirius muttered through gritted teeth, although Teddy realised that Sirius's view of Snape had grown in those few minutes. 

Teddy told stories of his childhood as the sun came up over Scotland. He told of Quidditch matches with the Weasley's, Harry and Ron's job, the new generation of Weasleys, and he told many stories of James.

When the sun had fully streamed over the mountain tops, Sirius and Teddy packed up their things and decided to formulate where to go next. 

'Are these guys after you, Ted?' Sirius asked bluntly.

'I don't really know.' Teddy replied truthfully, 'As far as I know they are just a terrorist group trying to pressurise the ministry into replacing the archaic sanctions on half b-breeds.' Teddy stumbled, 'So I guess they wouldn't mind getting their hands on me, although they wont be too upset with having the Boy Who Lived Twice's oldest son as a hostage.' He finished.

Sirius nodded, coming to terms with the situation in his own mind.

'Right,' Sirius said, 'Here's what we are gonna do. We will head off to Grimmauld Place, as there won't be anyone there at the moment will there?'

Teddy shook his head. He had told Sirius that Grimmauld was really a visiting house now. The Potters used to go frequently to reminisce, but Harry felt it best to leave it relatively untouched.

'What do you mean he's gone?' Harry fumed at his best friend.

'Just got the message through from McGonagall, Teddy escaped with a bagful of clothes. Left only a note.' Ron mumbled, shuffling his feet.

'It was obvious he was gonna try and escape! He's a _Lupin_! Why was there no-one watching over him?' Harry roared, pacing round his office. 

'Whoa, don't shoot the messenger. We are all worried, Harry.' Ron said calmly, 'Teddy can look after himself, we've just gotta run with it now right?'

'None of this should have happened,' Harry said, voice lowered, his breathing heavier than normal, 'I should have been able to stop this happening.' 

Ron just walked past his best friend, clasping his shoulder briefly, before continuing to sift through the archive notes on the Slytherists.

No matter how many charms were cast, the dust always fell like a blanket over the interior of Grimmauld Place. Teddy absent mindedly wrote his name in the dust on the banister of the staircase while Sirius rummaged for extra clothes upstairs. The minutes passed, so Teddy went to help.

As a child, he always remembered the smells of Grimmauld Place. They were comforting to him; he and Harry used to come on their own to check the place for Boggarts, and it always used to spark a conversation where he found out something new about his father. 

The smell was different today.

As Teddy walked into Sirius's room, he was caught by surprise at a stark, but familiar small that was out of place. He stood, perplexed for a moment, while Sirius continued to rummage through his draws, his face contorting with disgust at the state of his old clothes.

'Oi, Ted.' He said, 'You gonna help me or what?' Teddy didn't respond, 'Hey, kiddo, what's the matter?'

'Something's not right here.' Teddy mumbled and headed to the opposite corner of the room, towards Sirius's bed. Sirius laughed uncomfortably and was about to speak before he was caught by surprise by Teddy flinging his mattress into the centre of the room.

'Hey!' Sirius said, 'What're you-'

'Aha!' Teddy exclaimed, grabbing a small brown glove from the bed.

'Huh, what?' Sirius asked, confused, 'What's so special about that glove, and how did you know it was there? 'Coz I sure didn't put it there.'

'I smelled it.'

'You what? How did you smell it?'

Teddy turned, his hair flashing light brown colour of his father, grinning and waving the glove sarcastically, 'Half-werewolf!'

Sirius looked confused, and shook his head in defeat. 'Moony couldn't do that.'

Teddy nodded, 'I know, it's a little trick I picked up, Harry seems to think it's to do with inheriting the gene rather than being bitten. I do display some characteristics throughout the month. Like a distinctive sense of smell, and I'm pretty agile too, making me a good Keeper in Quidditch, unlike dad!'

'Right,' Sirius said slowly, 'I think I get it. So what's so special about this glove?'

'I noticed that something didn't smell normal in this room, I can't normally put a name on any smell, I can just tell if something is out of place or not, and this was. Upon inspection, its clear to see what is causing it, this is James's Quidditch glove.'

Sirius's eyes widened, 'What? What is it doing under my bed?'

'Not sure, but it means that James was here.' Teddy said, pulling the glove closer to his face for inspection. 'Hey wait what's this?'

Inside the glove was a small piece of white cloth, folded. Teddy unfolded it and lay it on the floor. Sirius shuffled over the floor and turned his head to read it. A few lines of James's furious scrawl were difficult to read.

_I know you will find this note Ted._

_Not here long._

_They're taking me 'somewhere only Harry Potter can go after me'_

_Think it's their hideout, they refer to it as the Cham-_

That's where the note stopped. Presumably James ran out of time and had to stuff the note in his glove and hide it under the mattress.Both Teddy and Sirius knew what the note referred too, but they both remained in silence for a few moments.

'How are we gonna get in there?' Sirius broke the silence, 'You know anyone that speaks Parseltongue?'

Teddy nodded, eyes still transfixed on the note. 'James' He said with finality.

'Shit.' Sirius said, standing up and putting his hands on the back of his head. 'How many of these Slytherists are there?'

Teddy shrugged, 'Not sure to be honest. Half a dozen?'

'Right.' Sirius sat on the mattress that was still sprawled over the floor. 

Teddy, eyes still on the note, had an idea. 'We could use Harry.' He said.

'Hell no, we aren't just going to chuck Harry in there on his own.' Sirius said with frustration, 'These guys seem like the real deal.' 

'I know. We go too. Harry will take Ron and probably George at the very least. Harry opens the Chamber, we follow and help. Simple stuff really.'

Sirius stroked the newly forming stubble on his chin for a second. 'Alright, we'll do it. You still have the map?'

'Yup, its downstairs.'

'You sure you are up for this? As a responsible adult I really should leave you here.'

Teddy shook his head, 'No chance. Things have changed slightly at Hogwarts, you'll never get in on your own.'

'Right, Ok. Write to Harry.'

Harry had fallen asleep at his desk. Ron had left to make some floo-calls to the rest of the department and the family. Therefore, the brown tawny owl glided through the open window unnoticed. It pecked at Harry's hair until he stirred and woke up. He readjusted his glasses and picked up the folded note in front of him.

_For the eyes of Harry Potter only. _

_Auror's Office, Ministry of Magic._

Harry opened the note.

_Harry it's me._

_I know where James is. We found a note at Grimmauld Place from James. Looks like they took him there to try and find some other stuff to bargain with. He has been taken 'somewhere only Harry Potter can follow'. I think James ran out of time before he finished the note, but I think it is the Chamber of Secrets. _

_Don't come to Grimmauld Place, we will have left by now._

_Head straight to Hogwarts, I think we will be running out of time._

_Don't go alone._

Harry re-read the note. He folded up the note and checked his pocket for his wand.

'Bloody hell, Ted,' he muttered.

Harry ran down the corridor of the Ministry of Magic, jaw set. A flash of red to his right signalled him to call out.

'Ron! We have a lead, grab your wand, we're going to Hogwarts.'


	13. Chapter 13

'I thought you said it would be difficult for me to get in on my own

'I thought you said it would be difficult for me to get in on my own?' Sirius said, cursing to himself as he banged his head on the ceiling of the small tunnel.

'I lied.' Teddy answered stiffly. He checked the map one last time to see if the surrounding area of the Willow was clear, 'How else could I convince you to let me come?'

Sirius stifled a laugh. 'I'd have let you come, kid. You think I would have made Remus's mini-me stay behind? No chance.'

Teddy stopped dead.

'I am _not_ like my father,' He answered a little more firmly than he hoped. Turning, he let Sirius see his firmly set jaw. Sirius winced slightly before rubbing the back of his head to try and lighten the mood.

'Woah, what's the deal, Ted?' He replied, 'You should be proud of your father.'

Teddy's face softened a touch as he lowered his gaze.

'I am proud of him. I am just not as brave-'

'Pfft. Who came running after James alone?' Sirius interrupted.

'…smart-'

'Obviously not. I am surely the brains of this partnership.'

'…or forceful as my father.'

Sirius let himself laugh this time.

'Forceful? Remus was forceful, yeah, but it only showed after hanging with me and James.'

Teddy raised an eyebrow, 'What about the _Guide to Everything_? Seems to me like he was pretty arrogant when it came to that.'

Sirius stood in silence, a smile twitching on his lips.

'Merlin, Ted. That was his Charms project! Me and James hijacked it and made it a Marauder's product.' Sirius said, reminiscing. 'Don't take things so seriously. In fact, don't take things so seriously like your dad did.'

Teddy folded his arms as Sirius placed his hands on the young-adult's shoulders.

'You are more like him than you imagine and it is _not_ something to be ashamed of. You are every bit the man he was, albeit with a slightly shorter temper, which I assume comes from your mother.'

Teddy suppressed a smile. 'I just want to make him proud.'

'I think you're wrong.' Sirius said firmly, stepping back from Teddy, 'I think you want to be proud of him. Harry went through this you know. He thought James was a cold-hearted bully. It's difficult for you guys to understand such important figures in your lives without meeting them. I bet anything, Ted, part of you resents your father for the condition he passed to you. No Wolfsbane potion can help, and even more importantly, it has been the reason for James being kidnapped. Am I right or what?' Sirius grinned.

Silence hung in the air for a second, before Teddy turned and began climbing out of the tunnel.

'Let's get a move on, Dr. Black.'

* * *

McGonagall had told the heads of houses to shut their pupils in their common rooms for the evening. Afternoon classes had been cancelled on receiving a swift note from Harry and all pupils were safely shut away. Teachers had been informed and the Aurors were on their way.

However, it still didn't stop McGonagall from getting shaky. She sat on the bottom step of the main staircase, adjacent to the floo gateway through which Harry would be arriving soon. Sat in thought, she failed to notice the figure of Neville Longbottom descend the stairs next to where she was sat.

'I feel like I'm getting too old for this, Professor.' The middle aged man said with a sigh.

Not answering immediately, the headmistress raised her head.

'It's not the years,' she said with a smile, 'it's the mileage.'

* * *

Harry, Ron and George left the headmistress and head of Gryffindor at the foot of the stairs as the sped towards the third floor toilets.

Harry had his eyes set in front of him and was not aware of him pulling away from George and Ron. The Weasleys were never the fastest. Harry only had one thing on his mind, getting his son back.

_No, not just my son, _he thought, _I have to get my Godson back too._

Tears stung his eyes as he rounded the corner to the bathroom. Stood in front of the main sinks was the figure of Teddy Lupin. Harry noticed his dark brown eyes first, his left eye surrounded by a purple bruise. In his right hand was his wand and in his left was James's Quidditch glove. He was wearing the coat of his father, the coat that fit like a glove.

Harry skidded to a halt in front of his Godson, tears welling up again, blurring his vision. He has so much he wanted to say to the young man, but could not say a word before Teddy shoved the Quidditch glove into his hands.

'The note's inside. I think my deductions are correct.' Teddy said stiffly, eyes still fixed on his Godfather.

Harry accepted the glove, but hesitated before reading the note. Teddy had grown so much over the years and was now an adult, but his eyes seemed so young, so distant, so hurt. Harry bit his lip and forced himself to read the note.

* * *

A nod confirmed Harry's agreement with Teddy's deductions. He stepped aside to allow his Godfather to open the Chamber. A short hiss escaped his lips and the sink rumbled and moved, as it had done that many years ago. Ron leaned over the edge of the drop and shuddered slightly at the memory of jumping into the Chamber for the first time. Harry turned to face Teddy.

'You aren't coming.' Harry said firmly. Teddy returned his gaze, lips thin.

'You think?' Teddy said sarcastically, instantly regretting his insolence.

_This is exactly as I knew he would react. _Teddy thought to himself, _so don't overreact and remember what Sirius told you to say._

'Go if you want,' Teddy said hesitantly, ´I don't want to cramp your style.'

Both Teddy and Harry winced. _It's what he told me to say, Harry!_

Harry's jaw set and he turned to the Chamber entrance. He dropped the glove, and with it the note, onto the floor by George's feet. Teddy remained where he was, eyes dropping to his feet in embarrassment. The two Weasley brothers switched between looking between the two men before Harry withdrew his wand and threw himself into the Chamber. Ron immediately followed.

George, however, hesitated. Teddy looked at his favourite 'step' uncle, eyes pleading.

'You want me to leave it open.' George said. Teddy confirmed with a nod. The older man's brow furrowed quizzically at the difference in the young man in front of him.

'Ted, mate,' He said slowly, 'I know you are strong enough to handle this, but I dunno if I could live with losing another brother.'

Teddy winced slightly. George seemed pretty sure of himself but yet refused to move from his spot. Silence hung once again.

_I should tell him._

'George, read the note.'

George reached down and picked up the note. His eyes scanned it silently.

'_We…_?' George emphasised the word in question. Teddy grinned, no way George would ever miss a subtle trick.

'I'm not alone.' Teddy said, 'I have an old friend with me.'

George threw Teddy a questioning look.

'Who?' He asked.

'Just trust me, George, please.' Teddy pleaded, 'Get yourself into that Chamber and I'll follow in a few minutes. You aren't gonna stop me.'

Hating himself, George jumped into the Chamber, leaving the entrance open behind him.

**A/N **Sorry couldn't resist the film reference there!!


	14. Chapter 14

Teddy breathed a sigh of relief as he saw George turn and jump down into the Chamber

Teddy breathed a sigh of relief as he saw George turn and jump down into the Chamber.

_The plan worked_

He had a quick look out of the bathroom doors and shut them quietly before heading over to the closest cubicle and knocking three times.

'They've gone,' Teddy said quietly, stomach churning slightly at the thought of what he was about to do.

The door opened and Sirius combed a large hand through his long hair. He took a few steps over to the cubicles and a smile split across his face.

'I love this bit,' he said with a grin.

'What bit?'

'The stealthy bit, of course,' Teddy raised an eyebrow, 'I'm stealthier than you could imagine!'

Teddy grinned, drew his wand and jumped into the chamber.

Teddy landed pretty cleanly. He stood, stepped to the side and wiped himself down, Sirius joining him soon after.

'Looks like they've gone,' Teddy said. Sirius nodded and took some steps forward into the open area surrounding them.

'It's pitch black in here!' Sirius said a little louder than intended.

'Shhhh!' Teddy ushered, 'Harry doesn't know I can get down here. Let's go.'

They proceeded down what looked like a small tunnel to the left of them, both hand their wands at the ready. The dank walls were only slightly visible, although Teddy was known to have exceptional eyesight. A clearing appeared at the end of the tunnel they were walking through. The rhythmic sound of dripping echoed through the clearing with precise monotony, and it unsettled Teddy slightly. He shuddered and stopped.

'You alright?' Sirius asked, putting his wand in his pocket, 'Your hair has gone a bright grey colour.'

'Yeah I'm fine,' Teddy said, needing to change the subject, 'Harry wasn't too impressed with what I said to him earlier you know.'

'Worked though, huh?' Sirius grinned. 'That's the only way you could have gotten Harry to go first; make him storm off. Otherwise he would have personally made sure you were cursed so much you couldn't follow.'

'Doesn't stop me feeling bad,' Teddy said, putting his wand in his pocket to do his coat up more tightly, 'Where do you think we should be going?'

'Not sure,' Sirius replied, 'You're the one with the better senses.'

Teddy smiled, nodded and squatted in the middle of the small clearing around him, he closed his eyes and tried remember what Harry told him about the tunnels.

'_The main tunnel reached a clearing…'_

'Ted…'

'Quiet a minute, Sirius.'

'_There were loads of further tunnels branching from the clearing, each leading…'_

'Ted, mate, I mean it…'

'Me too, Sirius, be quiet!'

'…_to__…to…to…'_

'Well this is cosy.'

Teddy jumped up and was grabbed tightly on the arm by Sirius. A harsh voice rang out around the small clearing.

'Going somewhere, young half-breed?'

Teddy winced and turned slightly, seeing a glowing wand pointed to him at point blank range. A quick turn of the head saw a second assailant facing Sirius.

Now back to back, Teddy and Sirius were well and truly cornered. Teddy began to panic slightly, his mind whirling as to how to respond. Sirius however, turned his head slightly towards Teddy.

'Act casual,' he whispered, 'Hands in pockets.'

The two men cackled loudly, quite clearly hearing what Sirius said. It took Teddy a few seconds, and a moment of panic before Teddy realised what was meant by what Sirius said, and he stuffed his hands into his coat pockets.

'This is an interesting predicament, huh?' Sirius said louder at the still laughing men, 'If you were gonna kill us, you would have done so already, am I right?'

The laughing stopped, but Sirius continued before they could say anything.

'You can't kill us, because you know Harry Potter is here, don't you?'

Teddy turned his head again, trying to get Sirius's attention. Why would he say something like that? The men began discussing loudly to each other across the clearing what they were to do about Harry, when Sirius turned his head and whispered to Teddy.

'Excellent,' He said, 'ready, Moony?'

Teddy flashed a smile, 'Ready.'

Quick as a flash, both Teddy and Sirius whipped their wands out and cursed the men in front of them. Sirius sent a basic stun spell at his assailant, and the strong red flash sent him flying across the room, unconscious.

Teddy was slightly more creative. A cross action of his wand sent a purple shock spell, hitting the man square in the chest. He stumbled and a circular flick of Teddy's wand releasing a green cloud, rendering the attacker unconscious. Before he hit the ground, a lazy flick upwards from Teddy sent him foot first towards the ceiling.

Sirius laughed. 'That last one was familiar.'

Teddy was about to answer, when a cry out from his left caught his attention. His strong hearing caused the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end.

'That is definitely James.' Teddy said, and both men went sprinting down the tunnel to their left.

It was only a few hundred yards to the chamber, and Sirius skidded to a halt just slightly before the opening, holding an arm out to stop Teddy from proceeding.

'Wait a moment,' he whispered.

Inside the room, Teddy saw James standing, paralysed, against the statue of Salazar Slytherin. He was awake, with his amber eyes fixed angrily in front of him, a small flow of blood trickling down the side of his face.

Two men and a woman 'guarded' James, standing in a triangular formation; the woman on his left, one man on his right and one man in the front. The latter had his wand pointed at Harry, who was stood a few feet away. Harry's hair had stuck to his face and his lip was bleeding. He was breathing heavily and took a quick glance at the unconscious George and Ron lay behind him.

'I swear to Merlin,' Harry breathed, 'if you don't let him go…'

'What are you gonna do. Harry Potter?' Teddy remembered the voice of Phoenix Bond, 'Are you going to tell us you have the whole Auror's office in the castle? Don't be ridiculous. You think we walked in through the front entrance?'

Harry clenched his teeth, eyes shooting around the room trying to formulate a plan. Bond was mumbling something about how they got in, but Harry wasn't listening.

'Jesus, Harry,' Sirius said.

'I know, I've never seen him so angry,' Teddy said, frustration pulsating through him. Harry would not be able to see them hidden in the shadows around 10 metres away.

'I think I actually have,' Sirius said, remembering the first time he met his godson, 'I was commenting on the moustache!'

Teddy looked at Sirius astonished, how could he be so calm about things? Before Teddy could ask, Sirius put a hand on his shoulder, suddenly serious.

'Listen, Ted. I know Harry and this is gonna get messy. So do me a favour, stay here.' Teddy opened his mouth to protest, but Sirius cut him off, 'I'll go in and deal with these three, you come in after and release James. Got it?'

Teddy raised an eyebrow.

'Got it?' Sirius said firmly, grey eyes sparkling in the dark. Teddy nodded.

'You'll give him a heart attack out there,' Teddy said. Sirius grinned.

'I like to keep him on his toes. In a minute, Moony!'

Sirius slid round the opening and held himself against the wall, still firmly in the shadows and invisible. Teddy held his breath. Both Harry and Bond were sill. All Teddy could hear was the breathing of Harry and James shifting his feet. The young boy carried a face identical to that of his father.

'Dad!' He yelled, trying to shake his feet free, 'Dad, you have to go!'

'Shut up, kid!' Maya Enfield said, turning her wand on the boy, pointing it just below his chin.

That was the last straw for Harry, and he leapt into action. He fired a few shots at Bond, before the combined stunning spells of all three Slytherists caught him off guard and sent him skidding across the floor. James cried out and Harry wiped the blood of the corner of his lip, struggling to force himself to stand up. Bond motioned to the other two Slytherists to move towards Harry.

'This is it, Harry Potter,' Bond said evilly, 'Seems the great one is going to finish his life in front of his eldest son. How anti-climatic for him'

Harry gritted his teeth once more, attempting to cast a shield charm as the two black-clad people walked towards him. Teddy made a move for his own was but was stopped in his tracks by a glance and a grin from Sirius, who stepped out into the light.

'Ha…!' he laughed. The three Slytherists turned their heads round in unison, 'I have two problems with that. One, he will not be finishing his life here and two, at least let his Godfather have a go, huh?'

'S…Sirius!' Harry breathed in shock.

'Alright, Harry,' Sirius said, whipping out his wand, 'That's a bad moustache. Ha!'

The older man sent a spell rocketing at Harry's attackers.


	15. Chapter 15

Sirius's spell knocked the wand out of the hand of Phoenix Bond and sent it skidding away

Sirius's spell knocked the wand out of the hand of Phoenix Bond and sent it skidding away. The Slytherist staggered backwards before speeding off to collect his wand. Bond gritted his teeth and pointed his wand at Sirius, eyes set. James's 'guards' flicked glances between Harry, Bond and Sirius, confused as to what action to take next.

'You…!' Bond bellowed, 'You're Black, Sirius Black!'

Sirius laughed and flung his head back. 'My reputation precedes me, 'he mocked, dropping into a low bow.

Harry remained on the floor, face displaying countless emotions; anger, confusion, pain, ecstasy, worry. 'S…S…Sirius,' he breathed, 'Wha…what are you-'

'Sorry to give you a fright there, Harry, but I guess I couldn't sit and watch anymore.'

'I apologise for breaking up this little reunion!' Bond interrupted, eyes and wand still fixed on Sirius, 'but we have a matter to attend to!'

With that, Bond threw a spell straight at Sirius, who tried to dodge. It caught the man on his shoulder and Sirius winced slightly, before springing into action himself.

The two men were locked in a duel of a speed Teddy had never seen before. The 17 year old stood wide-eyed, unable to move as Harry appeared to have overcome his shock and forced himself to his feet.

Bond was a better fighter than Teddy had expected, although to knock George and Ron out was no mean feat. Teddy bit his lip anxiously as Bond effortlessly rebounded any spell Harry and Sirius threw at him, feet dancing gracefully to avoid attack.

The two 'guards' joined into the fight moments later, and Harry was once again sent skidding across the stony floor as Maya Enfield targeted a perfect curse. James stood against the wall, struggling against his invisible bonds and shouting to his father.

'Sure you want to be leaving him unattended like that?' Sirius said, breathing heavily, 'Not trying to be rude or anything, but my grandma could reverse that holding spell from here.'

'The boy goes nowhere,' the woman murmured just loud enough for Teddy to here.

'Alright, suit yourself,' Sirius said calmly. He threw his head round to face the tunnel where Teddy was hiding and shot him a quick glance. Teddy took a second to realise its meaning before drawing his wand, 'I mean look, I'm not even looking, and I can release him from here.'

Silently, Teddy casted a releasing spell at James and the boy fell to the floor in front of him. The boy shook his head, gritted his teeth, and ran over to the base of the statue of Salazar Slytherin, skidding through the puddles to pick up his wand.

'James, don't you dare!' Harry yelled, trying to block a spell at the same time as calling out to his son. The spell caught him on the head, gashing him across the face. Harry yelled out as he countered his attacker.

James had picked up his wand and was sprinting towards the scene of the fight. Harry was trying to get closer to him while holding off both of the 'guards'. He was calling out to James, telling him to stop, to run, to leave it to the adults. Sirius, meanwhile, was preoccupied with Bond but still called out.

'James, mate. Not even joking but you've gotta get out of here.'

Teddy, still in the shadows watched reluctantly as James's legs were taken out from under him by a curse from Enfield. He fell harshly on his back and screwed his face up with pain before trying to get up. It was no use. Every time James made it to his feet he was rocketed across the room once more by Enfield. Harry and Sirius both tried to get to him, but any moment they let their guard down they were hit.

Teddy had seen enough.

He ran round the edge of the room, eyes focused on James around ten feet ahead of him. Enfield was walking slowly towards him now, wand raised. James was sat up and shuffling backwards, blood still pouring from the cut on his face. Teddy continued to run, ignoring the calls to him from his godfather and Sirius. He was nearly there. Enfield did not here the calls from the two men, she was to busy toying with James, and she shouted the spell across the room for everyone to hear.

'_Crucio!'_

The jet of red light shot from her wand and struck Teddy on the shoulder just as he slid in front of his almost-brother. Teddy closed his eyes tightly before the spell hit him, bracing himself. The pain soon came and caused him to tighten up into a ball on the floor, and crying out like he did on every full moon. James grabbed Teddy's shoulders and shouted to him, although to Teddy the noise seemed like a mumble behind the ringing that filled his ears.

At last the pain subsided slightly and he forced himself to a sitting position. He knelt with his back to James, holding his arms out beside him to block the younger boy from any spell. Enfield still continued to inch towards the two boys, an evil grin splitting her face.

'What's the matter, half-breed? Cant take anymore?' she spat. Teddy remained kneeling, gritting his teeth through the aches which ravaged his whole body.

Enfield readjusted the aim of her wand to square between Teddy's eyes, she opened her mouth to usher the word again, and Teddy closed his eyes as he had done before.

'_Cru-'_

The spell was interrupted with a thud and Teddy's eyes snapped open. Maya Enfield fell to the floor in front of Teddy and James, her head smashing off the floor in the process. Sirius had shoulder barged her from behind, an unconventional but effective way of knocking the woman out. He wiped the hair from his eyes.

'You alright, Ted?' Sirius asked rhetorically, 'Get James out of here.'

Teddy nodded and hoisted himself to his feet, grabbing the sleeve of James's ragged formal robes he would have worn to the Halloween feast those days ago. They made for the tunnel when a cry shot through the hall, stopping Teddy in his tracks.

Harry had been thrown ten feet into the air by the other man and sent hurtling back towards the earth, lying in a crumpled heap on the floor.

'Dad!' James yelled, releasing himself from Teddy's grip. Teddy tried to grab the young boy, but already James was again heading across the large hall to where his father lay. All Teddy could do was follow.

The man had his wand pointing at the heap on the floor, a sick smile etched across his face. Teddy could hear him mouth the words, 'this is the end' before a bright red spell hit the man in the temple. The Slytherist's eyes became vacant and he slumped to the floor beside Harry.

Sirius's face was contorted with anger that Teddy had never seen. He rushed to Harry's side and felt for a pulse. Breathing heavily he lay Harry on his back before grabbing a crying James by the arm as he tried to sprint towards Bond. Sirius grabbed him with both arms and pulled him close.

'He's fine, James.' Sirius whispered. Teddy stood around ten feet away, mind swirling partly through confusion and adrenalin. 'Dad is fine. Go with Teddy.'

Those last three words echoed through the hall as James turned back to his almost-brother. Teddy remembers the next few moments happening as if they were in slow motion.

It took one spell. The same spell that Sirius had used only moments before, to cause the ex-marauder to fall. James was hit moments later by a different spell, sending him rattling into the nearest wall, the invisible ropes fastening him as they had done before. Teddy found himself frozen by another curse. His feet were locked in place as Bond smiled at him, magically tying the unconscious bodies of Sirius, Harry, George and Ron to the wall next to a struggling James.

Teddy had clenched his fists tightly, and struggled against the spell locking him in place.


	16. Chapter 16

'Well, well, well

'Well, well, well.' Bond said slowly, pacing round the still struggling Teddy, 'Seems your little rescue attempt didn't go so well, half-breed. It's a shame really, seeing as you went to all that effort to revive a dead blood-traitor. How did you manage that one then?'

Teddy froze, anger pulsating through his body. He wanted nothing more than to throw his wand away and punch Bond right in the nose. That was nothing more than he deserved.

'Now you've got me, you can let James go.' Teddy said through clenched teeth. James had grown still; Teddy could see him watching silently out of the corner of his eye. All Teddy could hear was the ever-monotonous sound of dripping and the fast beat of his heart against his chest. Bond grinned again, displaying his perfectly straight, pearly-white teeth.

'You know yourself,' Bond said clearly, 'The Potter boy is not who we want. Sure he is the son of a half-blood, and that half-blood defeated Lord Voldemort,' Teddy's eyebrows dropped before Bond continued, 'but our aim as Slytherists was always to stamp out half breeds and blood traitors like you.'

'Don't listen to him, Ted!' James yelled, becoming animated again, 'He's a liar!'

All Teddy could do was stare. The niggling doubt he had grown so familiar with returned.

_Technically, what he is saying is true_, Teddy thought to himself, _I am the son of a werewolf. That then, surely, makes me a half breed. And it was me that got James into this mess._

Teddy looked over at the wall, James had fallen still again, tears streaking silently down the dirt on his face. His godfather, Ron and George were slumped forwards against the wall. As was Sirius Black, the man who had returned miraculously and mysteriously from the dead, and followed Teddy to James.

'Let's see what everyone else has to say about the situation then, shall we?' Bond said, eyes glistening in the dark, 'it is up to you as to what we do next.'

Bond turned and waved his wand horizontally. One by one, the four men stirred and awoke, blinking their way through the dark. Harry was first to react.

'Teddy!' Harry yelled. He glanced left and right, spotting Sirius, Ron and George waking on his left and his son tied on his right. A quick glance to ensure his safety was all Harry needed and his attention was returned back to Teddy, who was again being circled by Bond.

Sirius, Ron and George joined in shouting at Bond. George and Ron exchanged a shocked look at the presence of Sirius beside them.

'Sirius!?' Ron said loudly, mouth wide, 'is that y-'

'Shut up, Ron!' Sirius shouted, still glaring at Bond, 'You bastard! Let him go! I swear…'

'You know,' Bond interrupted, 'It's a shame that the Black family have sunk so low.' He looked at Teddy, 'Is this half-breed really worth it?'

Teddy closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He couldn't hear exactly what was being shouted at Bond, nor did he really care. It's not like he could do anything about it.

'I think it is time to see how long it takes for this half-breed to crack.' Teddy felt the tip of a wand touch his temple and the invisible restraints loosen. 'Let's see…you will lose consciousness, beg for mercy or try to run. The choice is yours, wolf boy.'

Teddy remained quiet and still. He was prepared for it. The shouts of his name were muffled by the whisper.

'_Crucio'_

Before Teddy knew it, he was lying on his back, face scrunched. His eyes swam beneath his eyelids and he could feel some falling down his face. Biting his teeth, he stopped himself from crying out. The ringing in his ears was overshadowed by Bond's voice.

'If only your scum of a father was here to see this,' Bond spat, 'would he proud to see such a weak son? Would your freak of a mother be able to do anything? Or would she be mown down like she was in the war? I was there you know, I saw her get killed. Then your pathetic father ran to Lestrange before Dolohov had his was with him. It was a pitiful sight to behold. Have you recovered, Halfling?'

Teddy was sat hunched, breathing heavily. His vision was blurred and there was sweat pouring from his temples, but the pain had subsided. He was only experiencing the aches that followed.

'Ready for round two?'

Teddy hauled himself to his feet and stood up as straight as he could. Bond touched the tip of his wand to Teddy's temple again and uttered the spell.

Every time it happened, Teddy ended up lying on the floor shaking. Every time he would haul himself to his feet and take it again. He had nearly lost all hearing. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the people he cared about, but could not hear them. All he could hear was the taunts of Bond and the dripping of water.

'You're a strong one, half-breed, I'll give you that.' Bond said after the fifth curse, 'most of your type struggle to make it past three before they beg for death.'

Teddy swayed on his feet slightly, head hanging. He wasn't sure how much more he could take. The sixth curse sent him flying onto his right shoulder on the floor. The impact sent a ripple of pain through him, but the pain of the spell made him weak. His cheek lay against the stone cold floor and he could see his wand lying about 10 metres from where he was. That was not help to him now.

'I believe this may be the end for Teddy Lupin,' Bond said, although Teddy could no longer tell where he was stood, 'The half-breed did well, he lasted, what, six spells? Not bad at all. Truly an honourable performance for a flawed and dirty excuse for a wizard.'

Teddy's hand lay by his face, his nails digging into the stone beneath him.

'Maybe now you will realise what dirt your father was, and what dirt you have grown up to be. You aren't really a human at all, Teddy.' Bond continued, 'It's a shame really because I have heard you were quite the Quidditch player. However, I must do my duty as a citizen and finish this.'

'Beg, Teddy Remus Lupin.'

Teddy's eyes closed tightly again. The last sentence echoed round his head numerous times. For the first time, he felt himself cry out.

_I'm not strong enough!!_ He thought to himself, _I'm just a filthy half breed; I'm not even a Potter._

However, his thoughts were broken by the sound of another voice in his head. A voice he recognised.

'You hear what he said, Ted?' Sirius said, 'Teddy Remus Lupin. You are the son of a war hero and one of the finest men to walk this earth. You hear me, Ted? I said man. He was also one of the best friends anyone could ever hope for. You can do it, Ted.'

'Teddy, you are your own person,' he heard Ron say, 'you share many qualities with your parents but you have a personality that is entirely your own.'

'It's true, Ted.' George continued, 'You think your dad could play Quidditch? No chance!'

'Ted, you have to get up, you just have to.' James said, although Teddy could hear his voice quivering, 'you are my brother and goodness knows what Lily would say if you denied it. Plus we have a whole Quidditch season to play yet. Are you going to let this little sidetrack get in the way?'

Teddy continued to lay still, each word sinking in.

'Teddy Remus Lupin,' the breaking voice of Harry Potter said, 'You were always a son to me after your father let us. I know it is difficult for you to listen to people telling you how much you are like him, trust me I know. But the fact of the matter is, Ted, you are like him and you should be proud to be like him. I'm proud of you, Ted. Remember who you are.'

_Remember who you are…_

_Who are you?_

_My name is Teddy Remus Lupin._

_I am son of Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks._

_Half werewolf_

_Half metamorphmagus_

_Godson of Harry James Potter and older brother to James Potter II, Albus Potter and Lily Potter II. _

_Gryffindor Quidditch captain_

_Best friends with Darcy and Jackie O'Brien_

_Strong duellist and proud member of the Weasley/Potter family_

'Well, Teddy Lupin?' Bond said, 'are you ready to throw in the towel? Are you ashamed of who you are?'

Teddy pulled himself to a sitting position.

_I am Teddy Remus Lupin_

_And I am proud to be who I am._

In a matter of seconds, Teddy had flung himself to his feet and began sprinting towards his wand. Picking it up, he turned and faces Phoenix Bond. Bond wasted no time.

'_Avada Kedavra_'

Teddy had done this one hundred times before. He had the Quaffle in his hands, ready to launch it back to one of his chasers, but from directly in front of him, a Slytherin beater had launched a bludger at him. He anticipated his move, but was aching from being hit earlier in the game. Still he flung himself to the side.

Teddy's so called 'jedi-like' reflexes, as Darcy used to call them, rescued him again. He jumped and landed on the cold floor in the squat position, hearing the crash of the spell hitting the wall behind him. Bond looked stunned, his mouth wide. This was Teddy's chance.

'_Expelliarmus!'_

The blue light his Bond square in the chest, he went rocketing backwards and slammed into the wall, falling limp at its base, blood trickling down his chin.

Teddy staggered slightly as his vision blurred again. He waved his wand quickly to release the others before he dropped to his knees. The world was spinning around him as he saw the figures of the others heading towards him. Teddy felt a few people grab him and talk to him, but he didn't hear what they were saying. Harry walked from the wall, green eyes shining in the dark. He was stood behind the others, but his was the only voice Teddy heard.

'Teddy,' he said breathlessly, 'You're hair…'

Darkness engulfed Teddy then as he felt himself fall onto the cold stony wall. He smiled.

_I am Teddy Remus Lupin._

_**A/N **_These two chapters were originally one massive one! But I figured it would be a little quick so split it into two!


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N **Thanks so much to my kind reviewers. Particular mention goes to ColinCreevy for a great review after every chapter. Thanks a bunch guys you keep me writing, love you!

There is still a chunk of character development left to do, not to mention loose ends like the Sirius situation so I am looking at possibly another 4/5 chapters. Hope you guys will stick it out for the long haul and I hope I don't achieve some sort of anti-climax due to a long drawn out ending.

* * *

'He's not looking too good, Harry.' Professor McGonagall said solemnly.

Harry sat on the crimson chair beside him, placing his elbows on his knees and his chin on his palms. He pressed into his temples with his index fingers, the familiar lump rising in the back of his throat. Behind him, James was asleep on one of the hospital wing beds, sleeping soundly. Harry had insisted that James be given something to make him sleep after the ordeal, it was clear that he had not escaped the situation without a scratch.

Since returning, however, Harry's thoughts had lay solely on Teddy. He stared blankly at the pale face of his godson, who was lain on his back. His cheeks had lost all colour and his face was covered in scratches, a blue bruise around his left eye was the only ounce of colour remaining. His long fringe stuck to his forehead, sporting a murky grey colour.

_His hair…_

'His hair colour changed, Minerva,' Harry whispered, voice croaking slightly. McGonagall shot him a confused look.

'That happens all the time though, right?' Sirius enquired. The older man was stood at the end of Teddy's bed, arms folded, carrying a blank expression. His eyes were fixed on Teddy's face, not blinking.

'It does,' Harry said, trying to retain his composure, 'but not usually that colour.'

He paused.

'It was turquoise, Minerva.'

McGonagall raised her eyebrows quickly, turning her head slightly and looking at Teddy's head over her half moon glasses.

'But it's not been turquoise since…'

'Since his parents died,' Harry finished. It was something that had worried Harry in the direct aftermath of the war. Teddy's hair was always changing colour as a child, from sunshine yellows to deep purples. But never turquoise, the colour that Harry remembered on him the first time he ever saw a picture of his godson. After the war, Teddy's hair stopped being that colour. Until that evening.

'Harry?' McGonagall asked questioningly. Harry jumped slightly, although not taking his eyes off Teddy. 'I was just saying we should think about taking Teddy to St. Mungo's.'

Harry shook his head quickly. 'No, he's not going. He doesn't like hospitals; I'd never be forgiven if I took him to St. Mungo's.'

There was silence for a couple of seconds, as the headmistress pondered the decision of Teddy's legal guardian. She breathed in to protest before Harry interrupted her.

'Not tonight,' he said, placing his forehead on his palms, 'give him a day.'

The professor nodded. 'I shall wake the O'Brien girls and inform them of Teddy and James's return. It's great to see you, Sirius.' She turned and left the room, her purple night gown flowing behind her.

The two men remained silent for a number of minutes. The cold wind outside was whistling across the stone of the castle, and James's soft breathing continued at a steady rate. Sirius unfolded his arms and leaned against the railings on the end of the bed.

'I'm sorry, Harry.' He said quietly, 'I should have done better to protect him, he was my responsibility. It's just…'

'He's so much like Remus.' Harry sat back on his chair and stretched his arms out beside him. He turned to his godfather, a small smile visible on his lips, 'It's so great to see you, Sirius.'

Sirius finally took his eyes off Teddy and turned to Harry. 'I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you in the war. You needed me and I was too cocky for my own good, so got myself in trouble. I'm very proud of you, Harry.'

Harry turned back to his own godson, 'You were more help to me on that night than you could ever have imagined. But I was not good enough for Teddy, for Remus.' Tears finally escaped Harry's eyes and Sirius walked over to him, picking him up and pulling him into a hug. Harry continued to cry and looked as vulnerable as he had done when he was a 15 year old. Sirius just held him and stared at the white wall, head in a daze.

'That's a terrible moustache, Harry.'

* * *

Both Sirius and Harry remained at Teddy's side all night. They had returned to the hospital wing at around 2 in the morning. It was now 6 o'clock on the Sunday after the Halloween the previous Wednesday. Things had occurred so quickly. Harry and Sirius had spent all night talking. Sirius said he had no recollection of how, or why he was here, saying his last conscious memory before waking up in that dark room was talking to Harry in the forest, those 17 years ago. Harry told Sirius how the Weasley family had expanded. He told stories of his own children and Teddy growing up, stories of Ron and Hermione's children, stories of George and his shop. Sirius listened, asking periodic questions, but part of him felt distraught that he was not there to see his godson get married, or to spend time with Harry and Teddy, the sons of the two best friends a person could ever have.

Sirius looked over at James, who had stirred slightly on the bed next to Teddy.

'He looks so much like you, Harry.' Sirius said.

Harry glanced at his son and smiled fondly, 'I think its more he looks like my dad.' Sirius nodded, 'He is famed for being a concoction of my dad and Fred and George. George in particular has really enjoyed spending time with James. I believe the decision to make him James's godfather has really helped George overcome losing Fred.'

'Does he play Quidditch?' Sirius believed this was the next most logical question, although he already knew the answer.

'Beater,' Harry confirmed, 'I tried to teach him to seek, but he always seemed to have more fun waving a heavy bat around.'

The door burst open at exactly 6.15, and the figures of two girls came into the room. The shorter of the two running for Teddy's bed, which was at the far end of the hospital wing. Harry stood.

'Darcy, Jackie.' He acknowledged. Harry noticed Darcy was crying and took a step away from the bed towards the girls. He opened his arms up, allowing Darcy to fly into them, sobbing hysterically. 'Darce, he's alright. Absolutely fine.' Looking up, Harry saw Darcy's twin stood facing him. He knew very well that both girls knew he was lying.

Darcy released Harry and walked over to Teddy's bed. She just stood and looked at him, terrified, for a few seconds, before turning and stalking her way out of the hospital wing, bare feet pattering against the stony floor.

Jackie watched her sister leave and transferred her eyes back to Teddy. She put her hand on his shoulder before turning to Harry.

'He'll be ok,' she said forcing a smile. 'How's James?' She asked, glancing over the other bed.

'He's fine, thanks Jackie,' Harry replied, 'he just needed a little sleep, that's all. Knowing him he would have stayed up all night with Ted.'

Jackie nodded, 'I'm glad,' she said, 'I should really go and find Darcy.'

'I'll let you know when he wakes, Jack.' Harry said with finality.

Jackie let Teddy's shoulder go and walked out of the hospital wing, letting the door creak shut behind her.

Harry regained his seat. 'They spend more time at our house in the summer than their own.' Harry answered Sirius's question, 'They feel like part of the family. Much like I did for the Weasley's I guess.'

Sirius smiled, 'You know what that means then,' Harry shot Sirius a quizzical look, 'Which one of them is young Moony going to marry?'

Harry looked taken aback for a second, before laughing to himself, remembering how he and Ginny got together. 'You're probably right, Sirius. If I was to hedge my bets, I'd say Jackie, the taller one with the long hair.'

'I'm not sure you know, I think upon first inspection, the first girl seems more possible, Darcy was it?' Sirius asked, confirmed by Harry with a nod.

The two men lapsed back into a furious conversation about the previous 17 years as the sun rose over Hogwarts.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N** In response to a review from ColinCreevy, James has red hair in this story, but does look like Harry in his face. So most people say he looks like James crossed with the Weasleys. Sirius was just pointing out how much he looked like Harry minus hair/glasses. Sorry if I'm not clear enough!

'Dad are you gonna let McGonagall take him to St. Mungo's?'

James was sat on the chair Harry had been sat on the previous night. Harry had his hands behind his back, looking out of the window. Sirius was sat on the bed James had been in before.

'That's _Professor_ McGonagall,' Harry emphasised, 'and I will let Teddy go to St. Mungo's, yes.'

Harry continued to stare out of the window. It was mid-afternoon now, and Harry's eyes ached with fatigue. He had not slept properly for a week, but there was no way anyone was going to remove him from Teddy's side. Sirius had remained all night and was beginning to get restless himself; he was twiddling his thumbs between his knees. James had woken up about lunchtime and was cleared to leave the hospital wing. He had sustained no injury from the previous night's ordeal, save for a nasty cut above his right eye that was now securely wrapped up with a white bandage around his head.

The door opened and a woman came running into the room. All three heads turned to the door as Ginny came flying into hospital wing, red golden hair shimmering behind her. James and Sirius stood. Ginny raced to her son and pulled him into a tight hug. James was not far off being as tall as Ginny now and returned the hug gladly, resting his chin on his mother's shoulder, grimacing slightly at Sirius.

'It's so good to see you, James,' Ginny said, surprisingly calmly, 'Are you OK, honey?'

James pulled away from the hug and nodded, still smiling to his mother, although his smile vanished when his mother placed a kiss on his cheek, causing the 14 year old's face to deepen in colour.

Harry walked over to Ginny and gave her a fleeting hug, kissing her on her forehead. Sirius beamed at the two of them, feeling slightly more sentimental than he would have hoped. Ginny turned to face him.

'Oh, Sirius!' she said as she flung herself into his arms, Sirius looked surprised, 'McGonagall told me as I arrived, I couldn't quite believe it was true. What happened?'

Harry and Sirius looked at each other and laughed. The three adults sat on James's bed and told the story from the beginning.

* * *

Sun set over the Scottish mountains as it always did. Early. Around 5 P.M, the lamps in the Wing automatically came on. Teddy had had no more visitors in the afternoon other than Jackie to check on him; Molly Weasley had taken Lily and Albus from Ginny so she could be here. James and Sirius were locked in furious conversation on James's bed, Sirius really growing to like the young Marauder. Harry and Ginny sat at the other side of Teddy's bed, beaming at the two of them, often commenting on how Sirius looked happier than they had seen him for a long time.

As the last speck of sunlight disappeared under the mountains, the hospital door opened and McGonagall came striding in, causing Harry's stomach to churn. It was that time already.

'Has there been no improvement?' McGonagall asked Harry as she reached the side of the bed.

Harry shook his head truthfully. Teddy had not moved an inch since they had arrived late the previous night. The only life you could really sense from him was his slightly-heavier-than-normal breathing.

'Then I think we have to take him, Harry,' McGonagall said sympathetically, 'I'm sorry.'

Harry looked to the floor and nodded. Ginny stood and put her hand on his shoulder, before stepping away from the bed. James sat scowling at his headmistress in silent protest. Sirius and Harry moved to the end of the bed where Teddy's belongings lay.

Harry picked up Teddy's coat and lay it over his forearm. He flung the rucksack over his shoulder, not noticing the parchment than floated to the ground. Sirius picked it up.

'I really thought it was him, you know,' Sirius said, turning the parchment over in his hands, 'Remus, I mean. Ted in that coat and holding the map,' Sirius handed it over to Harry, 'I really thought it was him.'

Harry sighed and placed the map safely back in Teddy's rucksack. Sirius picked up Teddy's broomstick. Harry felt a hand on his shoulder.

'I'll go with Teddy,' Ginny said, taking the rucksack and the coat from Harry, 'you have to go and see him.' Harry looked quizzically, Ginny motioned her head towards Sirius, 'Dumbledore, stupid. We have to find out if Sirius is here for good or if…'

Harry stopped her with a nod, handing over the rest of Teddy's belongings. Sirius, pretending he had not understood what Ginny was trying to imply, handed Teddy's broomstick to James, ruffling his red hair afterwards.

'I'll see you at the hospital, Prongs.' Sirius said fondly. Harry smiled slightly, unable to speak given the lump that had formed in his throat minutes before. Both men waved to Ginny and James before leaving the hospital wing.

'It's for the best,' Harry agreed, finally.

* * *

'_M&M's_' Harry said clearly, 'It's a muggle sweet.' he said, addressing Sirius's puzzled look, 'McGonagall keeps up the tradition of sweets for the password.' The gargoyle spun upwards, revealing a stone staircase to the headmaster's office.

The office was much more clutter-free than it had been during Dumbledore's time. The stacks of parchment were piled neatly on the desk and the books were arranged in alphabetical order. The portraits of previous headmasters shouted greetings at Harry and Sirius as if they had been forewarned of Sirius's return. Harry looked above the doorframe and nudged Sirius in the ribs. His godfather turned and looked to where Harry was pointing – to the shining frame of a painting of a potions classroom, its inhabitant was missing.

'Now there's a surprise,' Sirius chuckled, laughing at the frame footed by a gold plate that read '_Severus Snape'_.

At the far end of the office was the much larger portrait of Albus Dumbledore. The headmaster stood beaming and motioned for the two men to sit on the red chairs in front of McGonagall's desk.

'Great to see you, Harry,' Dumbledore smiled, 'I trust James has woken and is fine?' Harry nodded.

'Excellent, we are just waiting to see when young mister Lupin will be rejoining us then,' Dumbledore said calmly, 'and how wonderful it is to see you too mister Black.'

'Thank you, professor,' Sirius said, smiling nostalgically as he stretched his arms out beside him, yawning. Many a time he and James Sr. been sat on these very same chairs in their youth.

'Now, I suppose you wish to know as to why I can even see you at all?' Dumbledore asked rhetorically, 'Did you, perchance, find a note when you awoke, Sirius?'

Sirius pulled a small note from his pocket, one he had forgotten about and so had not shown Harry earlier.

_If you are reading this, he needs you._

_Find him._

'I thought I recognised the handwriting, but I wasn't too sure.'

Harry glanced over, 'That's Dumbledore, Sirius.' He said flatly, suppressing a smile. The headmaster smiled.

'I am almost disappointed, Sirius,' he said, smiling, 'I'd have thought you would have recognised my handwriting after all those times I wrote letters to yourself and masters Potter, Lupin and Pettigrew over various matters during your time here.' Sirius smiled guiltily.

'Wait,' Harry interrupted, 'It was you? But how could Sirius have a note on him from you when his body disappeared?'

'Ah,' Dumbledore said, 'Disappeared you say? Where did you wake, Sirius?'

'The Department of Mysteries.'

'The Department of Mysteries,' Dumbledore repeated, 'do you remember the locked door at the Department, Harry?' Harry nodded, 'Behind there is the other side of the veil. All those that fall through the veil end up in a separate room down a corridor behind that room. I simply opened the lock, a lock I had set myself and so knew how to break, found Sirius's 'room' and deposited the note on his person.'

Both men sat in silence. Sirius resisted the temptation to conjure some tumbleweed and send it bouncing across the room.

'You knew and didn't tell me?' Harry said, anger rising slightly through his voice.

'I am sorry, Harry.' Dumbledore said, 'but you had too much on your mind. Sirius would not have woken, and you would have worried too much. It was better for you to believe he was dead to protect you. Again, maybe I underestimated you, but I believed it was the correct decision at the time.' Harry shot daggers at his former headmaster. 'Let me explain.'

'I believe, Sirius, that you were not struck by a killing curse from your cousin, Bellatrix.'

'It was a stunner.' Harry said, eyes fixed on Dumbledore, 'He was stunned and fell through the veil.'

'Precisely,' the old man said, 'so Sirius entered the world beyond the veil alive and well. All those that pass over the archway are placed in a deep vegetative state. They lose all track of time and cannot be awoken. We at the Department believe it was either a piece of dark magic that created it, or it was a natural phenomenon. The effects of the veil were found at the ministry, and the Minister for Magic at the time felt it best to research it. So, the Department of Mysteries was conceived and built around it. I, a young graduate from Hogwarts, was charged with creating a locked door system.'

'It takes a great power to revive one who has fallen through the veil. It has only happened on a couple of occasions, but I believed the possibility could arrive for it to happen to Sirius. For a person to be revived; there needs to be a desperate need for them to be so. Now need is to be expressed purely and truthfully by the person who is closest to them. In Sirius's case, that was you, Harry.'

Sirius and Harry looked puzzled, but Dumbledore continued regardless.

'It is a magic similar to that of the Mirror of Erised. For the person to be revived, those closest to them will _need_ them to return, not just want it. Am I correct in thinking you yourself were having doubts over the ability to find your son, Harry?'

Harry nodded again, remembering the desperation he felt after speaking to Teddy, and the guilt rising in his stomach as he blamed his godson.

'That desperation for outside help and that sense of loneliness is what woke Sirius. The door is locked only from the outside, so those who passed over the veil can leave 'through the front door', as it were.' Dumbledore finished, smiling triumphantly.

'Wait…' Harry said, Dumbledore raised his eyebrows, 'I needed Sirius in the war. I needed him more than ever during the battle. Why was he not awoken then?'

'That is the mystery of this magic, Harry.' Dumbledore replied, 'you had in your possession the whole time, whether you knew it or not, the Resurrection Stone. My only answer for you to that question would be that as you had the Resurrection Stone on your person, you did not _need_ for Sirius to be revived as you had other means of contacting him. Your need for him to accompany you into the forest was spiritual; you needed his reassurance, not his physical form to help you fight.'

Harry scrunched his forehead for a second, before nodding in understanding. Sirius had a broad grin on his face.

'So, I'm here for good, then?' He said hopefully.

'Indeed.' Dumbledore said, beaming. Sirius grinned and put and arm round Harry's shoulder, pulling him in and ruffling the grown man's hair. Harry struggled slightly, but a grin was visible across his face too.

'I think we had better get down to St. Mungo's.' Harry said, grin disappearing slightly. Sirius began for the door and Dumbledore nodded to Harry.

Just before Sirius reached the door, a flash of movement at the top of his vision caught his attention. Sirius's grin grew again.

'Snivellus,' he acknowledged with a nod and a mock bow.

Severus Snape's eyes narrowed and his black hair shook slightly as his long bangs hung by the side of his face.

'Rather immature, is it not, Black?' He replied menacingly.

'Not at all.' Sirius replied, 'I was merely commending you on your promotion to headmaster and thanking you for aiding my Godson in saving the world.'

Severus's mouth thinned as Harry pushed past Sirius.

'Let's go, Sirius,' Harry said grinning, realising that Sirius was not being 100 sarcastic in his last remark. After Harry began his descent down the stairs, Severus left his portrait.

Sirius began to follow, but was struck with a sole, utterly important question he needed to ask Dumbledore.

Turning and jogging briskly over to the portrait, he leaned in close and whispered his question.

'How old am I?' Sirius asked, worried. He did not feel a day older but you can never feel too sure.

'The same age you were as you fell through the vale.'

'OK, so 33 still.' Sirius replied, sighing with relief. 'WAIT!' he yelled,making some of the older professors in other portraits jump, 'Wait, wait, wait, wait… 33?'

'If that was the age you fell through the vale, then yes.' Dumbledore replied, pretending not to follow Sirius's train of thought, although he knew exactly what Sirius was getting at.

Sirius was laughing, tears forming in his eyes.

'But…33 years old…' he stammered between laughs, '33 years old… makes…makes me…' Sirius was struggling to finish his sentence, so Dumbledore prepared to do it for him, '33 years…years old makes me-'

'-the same age as Harry.'

**A/N **Hehe! .

If I haven't explained the veil thing properly then let me know! I checked checked and double checked to make sure it made sense! Please R&R!!


	19. Chapter 19

A/N I checked the ages of the characters after prompting following the last chapter

**A/N **I checked the ages of the characters after prompting following the last chapter. Turns out Sirius was 36 when he died… But, if I'm right, according to a Harry Potter Wiki, Harry was born in 1980, and was 37 during the DH Epilogue, making him 36 at the beginning of Teddy's Seventh Year. So they are the same age. Not quite as funny but funny nonetheless. Last chapter has been edited accordingly.

Harry and Sirius arrived at St. Mungo's half an hour after leaving McGonagall's office. Sirius caught up with Harry with a grin stretching from ear to ear, Harry was never told why. After negotiating the numerous white corridors, busy with nurses clad in blue with small cone-shaped hats on, Harry and Sirius found the door reading _'T.R. Lupin_'. Harry knocked and entered before waiting for an answer.

Teddy had been stationed in a bog standard St. Mungo's room. He wasn't in a ward due to the nature of his mysterious injuries and due to his name; many people could recognise the name Lupin, and if they couldn't, they would recognise Harry Potter anywhere. A couple of muggle machines for emergencies lay in the corner, but otherwise the room was a little empty. Ginny was sat on Teddy's right, adjacent to the window; she glanced up and gave a silent smile. On the wall above Teddy's head there was a magical chart, recording his heart rate and blood pressure without the need for complex muggle machines.

James was sat on the other side of Teddy, and turned, smiling, when he saw his father enter the room. At the end of the bed, standing next to the railings was young Albus and Lily, who were busy in discussion, Lily waving her arms energetically. It took them a couple of seconds to notice new people had entered the room, and Harry took a step forward.

'Daddy!' They both yelled in unison. Harry squatted and held his arms out, inviting Albus and Lily to fly straight into them.

'Hey, guys,' Harry said, squeezing them tight, 'are you looking after your mum?'

'Uhuh,' Lily said, stepping out of the hug and absent mindedly waving her bright red hair out of her face, 'and Teddy too!'

'That's great, Lily, good job,' Harry kissed his daughter on the forehead and ruffled Albus's hair, 'There is someone I'd like you to meet. Lily Potter, Albus _Severus_ Potter,' Harry emphasised the 10 year old's middle name and waved his arm to Sirius, who was smiling sheepishly in the doorway, 'meet Daddy's godfather, Sirius Black.'

Lily's eyes lit up with excitement and she flung herself forward, holding her hand up to be shaken. 'Nice to meet you, Sirius!' She said with a smile identical to her mother's across her face.

Harry chuckled and guided the young 8 year old away from the doorway. Lily had always been the louder of Harry's two youngest children. James was a good deal older than Albus and Lily and so preferred the company of Teddy, and in most cases, George. Lily had become the ringleader of the little troupe of Weasley cousins around her age, a troupe also containing Rose and Hugo, Ron and Hermione's children. Lily spent most of her childhood arguing with Rose as they were very headstrong, both showing stark similarities to their mothers when they got fighting. She was very close to Hugo, however, who was the quieter of the two young Weasley's.

Albus stepped forwards and held out his hand. Sirius laughed in exasperation at Albus. Everything from the black hair to the green eyes was identical to that of Harry. They were more alike than even Harry and James Potter Snr. looked. Sirius shot a 'you've gotta be kidding me' look at Harry who grinned and shrugged.

'I've heard a lot about you, Sirius,' Albus said, smiling politely. Sirius crouched and shook the young Potter's hand.

'As have I, Albus _Severus_, as have I.'

Sirius pulled Albus and Lily into a brief hug, another smile splitting his face. After releasing them, Lily and Albus continued their animated conversation and Harry and Sirius headed over to the bed.

'What have the doctors said?' Harry asked Ginny, taking Albus and Lily's place at the end of the bed.

'They say technically, there is nothing wrong with him. They aren't sure why he hasn't stirred or woken and are puzzled at how grey his skin as gone.' Ginny said, sighing. 'It's a mystery, I'm afraid.'

Sirius stood by James and ruffled his red hair with a smile. The door snapped open and a small plump woman, with greying red hair stood in the doorway, hands on her hips.

'Ah, Harry, dear, it's wonderful to see you,' Molly Weasley said, striding over to her son-in-law, encasing him in a strong hug. She greeted her grandchildren before standing up straight and looking straight at Sirius.

'Well, well, what a surprise, Sirius,' she said, hands reverting back to her hips, her head cocking to one side, 'Ginny told me you had miraculously turned up.'

Sirius put a hand to the back of his head, smiling guiltily and remembering his past encounters with Molly Weasley, 'Uh, yeah, miraculous, Molly. It's all been explained now, though, and it seems I'm here to stay.'

'Wonderful,' Mrs. Weasley said, surprising Sirius by enveloping him in as tight a hug as she could muster. Ginny and Harry could not suppress their laughter, Ginny especially, her tired eyes shining at the realisation that Sirius was not leaving them.

Sirius's face went as red as the Weasley's hair, and he glared at Harry over the shoulder of Mrs. Weasley. She broke away.

'Well now, dears,' she said, addressing them all, 'look at the time, it's gone four. I'd better take the children back to the Burrow, Ginny.' Her daughter nodded, 'Come then, young Potters time to leave mummy and daddy to look after Teddy.'

A roar of contempt rose up from the two youngest Potters, as Ginny and Harry said goodbye to them in turn. Lily pouted and folding her arms, refusing to return her parent's hugs. James stood by the bed and laughed.

'I don't know why you are laughing, young man,' Ginny said sternly, 'you're going too.'

James looked a little taken aback before his face reverted to what Harry called 'the classic teenage sulk face'.

'Whaaaaat?' James whinged, 'I'm way older than Al and Lil, I want to stay with Teddy.'

'You are going with your grandma and that's final, James Sirius Potter. We are allowing you tomorrow out of classes, but after that it's back to Hogwarts! Now move!' Ginny gave him a sharp shove towards the doorway to follow his grandmother and his siblings. Harry just grinned, but straightened his face at the glare he received from his wife. Eventually, James shuffled towards the door, dragging his feet.

'Later, Jamesey-wamsey,' Sirius muttered mockingly.

'Shut up, Sirius'

Night fell over St. Mungo's and Harry, in fatigue had fallen asleep on the chair beside Teddy's bed. Ginny and Sirius were discussing various subjects. They were undisturbed for much of the evening, only once did a nurse enter the room, asking them to leave as visiting hours were over. She didn't last very long in the room, however, before she was so shocked to see Sirius Black in a hospital years after his death that she left them alone.

Sirius was deep in conversation about the First War before Ginny grabbed his arm sharply, digging her nails into his bicep.

'Sirius,' she interrupted, 'Sirius, look!'

She pointed to the bed. Teddy had his face screwed up and had rolled onto his right side, cheek pressing against the uncomfortable pillows.

'He's moved!' Sirius said, standing up and shaking his godson, 'Harry, Harry wake up.'

Harry stirred and Teddy rolled onto his left shoulder, gritting his teeth. It took a disorientated Harry a couple of seconds to notice, but soon enough he was stood up, alert.

Teddy rolled again, swiping at his nose with his left hand. Harry ran round the bed and crouched next to Teddy's head.

'Harry…his nose is bleeding,' Ginny whispered. Sirius made for the door.

'I'm going to get the doctor.'

'Wait.' Harry stopped Sirius in his tracks. He had pulled back Teddy's duvet and was looking at Teddy's fingers. 'Look out of the window, Sirius.' Harry said quietly.

Sirius walked over to the window, puzzled. He looked into the street outside. He saw nothing out of the ordinary. There were no streetlights, so he couldn't see much, not even the moonlight was that strong…

The moonlight.

Sirius glanced up to the sky and stared silently at the perfectly round orb suspended in space.

'Oh…shit.' Sirius muttered. 'This is typical Lupin luck. Do the doctors know?'

Harry shook his head. 'Nope, he isn't on the register. I made a deal with Kingsley.'

Sirius understood and watched Teddy stir silently, noting his dark grey face and dull brown hair. Harry had recognised the symptoms by checking Teddy's fingernails. The triangle, sharp shape to them confirmed what Harry feared. Sirius, unknown to Harry, had seen all of these symptoms before.

'Remus used to go through this bit,' Sirius broke the silence, Harry and Ginny looked up, 'this is the early stages of transformation. Teddy just must not go the full way. It was when we saw the funny shaped fingernails that we made sure the door to the Shack was locked and we transformed. It was normally the last thing Remus remembered before losing control; a stag, a dog and a disgusting little rat.' Sirius sat at the end of Teddy's bed. 'It's not fair. Remus should be here. I am and I don't deserve it, it was my arrogance that nearly got me killed.' He paused.

'And, who in their right mind organises a full moon the day after we fight off a bunch of Slytherists!'

Harry and Ginny grimaced as Sirius tried to punch some humour into the situation. Harry mopped up the blood on Teddy's pillow with a towel. There was nothing Harry and Ginny could do, normally they forced Teddy to remain awake and one of them stayed with him all night. It was the easiest way as Teddy knew what the problem was and knew how to face it. If asleep, he normally exacerbated the problem by excessive scratching.

_The field by the wood stretched out as far as the eye could see. Teddy bit his lip as he headed towards the wood that was strangely familiar to him. _

_He had a headache, but was more concerned about his location._

_A rustling to his left startled him. A dark figure scrambled between the bushes in the same direction Teddy was heading. It was a child._

_Teddy followed._

_It seems the young child was being pursued by a larger, seemingly stronger person. He was scared, shouting out as he scrambled through the trees. Teddy tried to run off the track he was taking and help, but his feet were moving of their own accord. He could feel the thumping in his ears, his headache worsened._

_Teddy began jogging, although not out of choice. He heard the raspy growl-like voice of the older person, but could not decipher what was being said. Teddy's own ears rung, Teddy bit his lip and allowed his legs to take him deeper into the forest._

_A clearing was reached. The young child, a brown haired boy, tripped over a root. He was heading towards a small cottage, Teddy recognised it. _

_The boy was shuffling backwards on the floor now. The pursuer was a creature, a large dark-haired creature – a werewolf. Teddy's feet stopped him moving, and every joint in his body ached. He buckled slightly, tears stung his eyes, but he continued to watch the scene unfolding before him, paralysed by fear._

_The boy backed himself up to a small apple tree in the garden. He was still seated, but was breathing heavily, fearful of the thing in front of him. The boy was maybe 4 or 5 years old, not much more than a toddler. A light clicked on in the cottage behind the tree, and a tall, thin man stepped out, wand light shining._

'_Remus!!' The man yelled. He made for the boy but was stopped by a fairer haired woman in the door._

'_John! John, your wand!' the woman shouted, making the thin man draw his wand and fling all sorts of curses at the werewolf. _

_Tears again stung Teddy's eyes. He was in excruciating pain, but managed to haul himself forwards, scrambling to his feet._

_An invisible wall stopped him proceeding, his feet buckled again and he couldn't move. The young boy, Remus, Teddy's father cried as the werewolf took steps towards him. _

'_Dad!' Teddy and Remus both yelled, 'Dad! No!'_

_Teddy reached out through his pain to his father, shoulder aching and neck straining to hold his head aloft. At the other end of the clearing, there was a man stood alone. He was tall and thin, wearing a somewhat tatty coat. Teddy's coat. He turned to look at Teddy from all those feet away, brown/grey hair framing his face. He bore a scar the same as Teddy's, streaking across his nose horizontally. His face held a sad smile._

'_Dad!' Teddy shouted out again, tears falling freely down his face. He ignored the scene playing out in front of him and focused his attention on the adult form of his father across the clearing. The shouting of the other scene had been diverted to the back of his mind. _

'_Leave it, Teddy,' Remus Lupin said to him, quietly. He was so far away but Teddy could hear him clear as day, 'leave it. It's in the past. Let it go. You are incredibly strong Teddy, and I'm sorry you have to go through this. Your mother and I are very proud of you. Tell Sirius Moony says he's and idiot to have let his guard down like that, and tell Harry thank you for me wont you? I love you son.'_

_The sad face broke out into a genuine smile and Teddy reached out again. He could not understand the unfairness of the wall blocking him proceeding across the clearing. His father turned his back and walked slowly into the forest. Teddy turned his head slowly, wincing at the pain, to see Fenrir Greyback leap into the air at the distraught young boy…_

With a gasp, Teddy sat bolt upright, and was immediately grabbed by something. He was somewhat disorientated, his head was throbbing and his back ached like never before. The sun through the window on his left stung in his eyes as a mixture of blurry colours swam before him. The left side of his face felt something soft, hair possibly, cushioning it. He moved his eyes slightly and saw a bundle of red hair on his shoulder.

Teddy swayed in Ginny's arms for a second. Harry and Sirius both called out to him, but Teddy could hardly here them. His eyes were focusing slowly, but he made out the figures of his Godfather and Sirius stood at the end of the bed. Upon realising it was them, he closed his eyes and smiled. His overly long fringe fell over his eyes and Teddy was momentarily surprised to see his hair had gone a funny shade of turquoise.

Wincing slightly, he pulled his right arm up to his fringe and pulled a chunk of it down so it was dead straight in front of his eyes. He laughed.

'That's a new one.' Teddy croaked.


	20. Chapter 20

**-uses Phoenix Down on Fanfic-**

**Welcome back! I left this one to die a little bit...ooops! I got obsessed with Tales of Symphonia and Phoenix Wright, so wrote for them instead! Will try to finish this one off soon.**

'Is he going to be alright?'

Sirius leaned on the stone white walls of the corridor in St. Mungo's. He pushed a hand through his hair and glanced at the tired face of his godson, addressing the Doctor with fierce concern. The small, wrinkly old doctor seemed unaware of Harry's urgency and paused before answering.

'Mr. Lupin will be fine. We are not sure of the means of his illness, however, I am confident that he will be able to leave after a couple of hours of monitoring,' the Doctor replied monotonously.

Harry nodded slowly and the Doctor stalked his way back down the corridor. The hero of the war turned his gaze through the small window in Teddy's doorway. His godson was sat up in his bed, talking with Ginny, who was nodding away. He hadn't been quite right since he had woken, but Harry was just glad he had woken at all.

'Harry...go and get some rest.' Sirius mumbled, grasping Harry's shoulder with a firm hand, 'You and Ginny go back home, I'll stay here with Ted and try and get him to quirk up a bit.'

Harry turned to Sirius, 'You think he's OK?'

'Don't be stupid, Harry. Of course he's not OK, he got tortured by a freaking Slytherist,' Sirius's eyes shone with anger, 'He isn't just gonna recover straight away.'

Harry's head dropped, 'You're right, Sirius. I'll go back to Godric's and talk to the kids. We will be back in a few hours, that alright?'

Sirius smiled and pushed the door open, 'No problem.'

Ginny and Teddy's eyes both shot to the door as Harry and Sirius entered the room. Ginny smiled and stood from the chair.

'What did the Doctor say?' She asked.

'He's fine. They said they 'aren't sure what caused his symptoms'...' Sirius motioned the quotation marks with his fingers, 'but will let you go later.'

Teddy smiled silently as Sirius sat down on the end of the bed.

'Ginny, we should go back to Godric's. James will be doing your mother's nut in.' Harry kept his face set.

Ginny brushed her black trousers down and nodded, getting the message, 'Sure. Take care, Teddy.'

* * *

'How are you feeling?' Sirius asked cautiously, eyeing the teenager. Teddy's eyes were vacant, yet they shone brightly in the dimly lit room. He lifted his head and his gaze met Sirius's.

'Better,' he replied, flashing a fake smile, 'Didn't go quite as planned, huh Sirius?'

Sirius's face remained serious as he shuffled his feet slightly, leaning against the marble white wall. 'When are you going to stop lying?'

Teddy retained his smile, 'I'm not lying.'

The older man shook his head and rubbed his eyes with his fingers.

'Alright fine...' Sirius looked up as Teddy's gaze shot down to his feet after his rather snappy reply. He absent-mindedly crossed his legs beneath him and rubbed his soles vigorously, 'I saw my dad. He spoke to me.'

Sirius's forehead crinkled, a concerned look flashing across his features, 'How about you tell me all about it?'

* * *

The cool breeze pushed some brown hair across Teddy's face. He heard the sound of first years shouting to one another, playing with a rather crude muggle ball, across the grass. Out of the corner of his eye he saw flashes of green above the Quidditch pitch; seems the Slytherin team were training. He heard the sound of McGonagall shouting through one of the stone windows, something about not doing homework.

He smiled to himself.

Home at last.

'T-Teddy!'

Teddy flinched as a rather short, but strong, solid object collided with him. Flashes of deep red hair and pale white skin obscured his vision, and Teddy felt Darcy squeeze his sore shoulders rather tightly.

'Ow...' He recoiled slightly and Darcy loosened her grip, uttering an apology that was nearly completely muffled into Teddy's robes. The teenager noticed Jackie grin over her sister's shoulder and wrap her thick winter cloak round her shoulders to stiffle the cold.

* * *

Teddy scratched the back of his head meekly, ears and hair turning a deep pink as he entered his Transfiguration class late the next morning. Twenty pairs of eyes turned to stare at him as his black school shoes echoed his footsteps across the marble floor around the room. Professor McGonagall looked up over her wire-framed glasses as Teddy entered, face not changing. Teddy smiled meekly and flinched as his wooden chair scraped along the floor when he pulled it out.

'Nice of you to join us, Mr. Lupin.' McGonagall's expression didn't change as Teddy sat.

'I'm sorry, Professor. I slept in a bit to late and...' Teddy trailed off and opened the textbook, trying to locate the reading passages set by the teacher on the blackboard.

'Detention, Mr. Lupin.' McGonagall's gaze fell back onto her book. Teddy gaped at his teacher as mutters from the other students filled his ears. Jackie elbowed her sister to stop her from complaining, and the short-haired girl cried out, rubbing her rib.

'Quiet!' McGonagall scolded, sending the seventh years back into a hushed silence. Teddy accepted his detention, mumbling another apology, and the class returned to their books.

Nobody noticed the small smile forming on Minerva McGonagall's face behind her book.

**A/N Yeah I know, not great, but I thought I'd revive the story. At least I have waded through the writers block.**


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